The Creation of Diplomacy
by EpsilonProductions
Summary: One month has passed since the octarians' defeat at Octo Canyon. New laws have been created in Inkopolis Town thanks to a project created by the inkling government to ban any, and all octarians from visiting out of fear of them stealing the Great Zapfish for a third time. One octoling however, wants to set everything right between the two races after being spared by a certain face.
1. Ariel

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _A Splatoon story written by EpsilonProductions, part of the "_ _ **Creation Trilogy**_ _"_

 _What's up, everyone? I am back for round 2, as you can see with this new series of mine that I have planned to work on for quite some time now after the story I scrapped known as the Snowstorm, which I did, due to how unmotivating it was for me, as well as blatantly using characters from other games or what not. Frankly speaking, I don't really like it the way it used to be, so consider the whole story of that as non-canon, even if you've read it. It doesn't exist, and I have no intention of bringing it back._

 _Anyways, I would like to ask for constructive, helpful reviews to assist me during this series of mine! Those types of reviews are always appreciated, and I am more than willing to listen to what you have to say, rather than whining and complaining about getting the smallest of criticisms! I am looking forward to seeing how I can improve on this story as it comes along!  
This is NOT my first story, and I want this series to be my best work of literature here for this archive compared to everything else I've made! So please, do feel free to help me out in case I make a mistake, or if I could make some improvements!_

 ** _Without further ado, let us begin this series with the first chapter of this story!_**

* * *

 _ **Chapter I: Ariel**_

A stormy, dark night was looming over the landscape known to the inklings and octarians as Octo Canyon, home to the latter of the two that have recently just been defeated a month ago by the New Squidbeak Splatoon, thanks to one of the Squid Sisters and a lone inkling going by the name of Agent 4 rescuing Callie, defeating, and capturing their leader yet again in a fashion similarly to how they won two years ago with Agent 3 at Octo Valley.

Since their recent loss, the hopes of the octarians have reached a record low, seeing as when the Great Zapfish was taken back by the inklings the first time, the octopi people didn't suffer through a whole lot, only needing to worry about a slight lack of power and electricity to the ones living in the valley while some of them moved to live up in the capital of Inkopolis.  
However, because of the Great Zapfish having been stolen a second time along with one of the most famous idols known to inkling culture, the inkling's views on them have now changed for the worse, now shunning, and looking down on the octarians staying in Inkopolis out of fear. That is, if there were any octarians to begin with.

Word of a project was reached out to many, a project dedicated to keeping out every octarian in Inkopolis, as well as making Octo Canyon a tourist attraction for the inklings and other races wanting to take in all the sights, even the Squidbeak Splatoon was forced by the creators of the project to make a new rule to make the canyon safe for inklings to traverse through, as well as inhabitable for everyone included with the inclusion of safety rails around every island, and modifications to each sector while the octarians worked all day and night with little to no rest at all.

Even with the slightly overcrowded and dangerous environment, thanks to a lack of safety rails in certain areas along with harsh treatment from some of the more powerful octarians, some of them have tried their best to survive in these conditions. It's all thanks to Cephalon HQ being a safe haven for them to live in, due to their former homes having been forced to be kept under surveillance by the platoon from Tentakeel Outpost, the sector that led to Inkopolis City.

Under one condition, that they were forced to do manual labor, even against their wills.  
Anyone that was found trying to run away from work, or do anything that would disrupt the flow of the project would "suffer the consequences," as the elite octolings wearing shades put it.

At the heart of Octo Canyon lies a large, transparent dome covering everyone down in Cephalon HQ, a platform covering half the lake of purple ink so their inkling visitors and overseers could safely walk around their headquarters without getting splatted, while the octarians were being ordered, and watched by a squadron of elite octolings having been forced to work on this project for all the trouble they caused along with the regular octolings, helping the octarians out with the hard work while some of the other stronger octarians like the Octocommanders and Octosnipers were watching the area for any trouble or mischievous behavior.

In the midst of all this work, one octoling in particular unenthusiastically placed down a piece of metal near the edge, sweat trickling down from her forehead, then onto her chin before dripping onto the ground below as she rested her arm on the metal she was carrying, letting out a puff while shaking her cramping arms.

Just as she was about to sit down to take a short break, though...

"Hey, you!" One of the elite octolings caught her slacking off, a yellow light glowing on her shades as she performed a super jump towards the worker. It was none other than her sister, forced to wear the same type of shades one of the squid sisters wore, provided by the Squidbeak Splatoon to the octarians that held a grudge, or act violently towards them or the inklings.  
"What are you doing!? You're not supposed to be slacking off at this time! Get back to work!" She ordered as her sister looked up, stressed out from having been yelled at by someone that she once held so close to her.

"I'm sorry, Di-" The octoling feels the elite gripping her shoulders, a distant clasp of thunder being heard as she felt a sense of dread looming over her.  
"I am not hearing another one of your excuses, Ariel." Her sister said in a passive-aggressive tone, the light on her shades turning from a shade of yellow to a color of orange. The younger of the two wanted to say something, but was cut off as soon as she opened her mouth to speak. "This is your last warning before you're getting your punishment, do you understand!?" She raised her voice before pushing Ariel back to the safety rail she was resting on, her shades now flicking to a red color as the younger of the two nodded desperately, staring in shock at her sister.  
"GOOD! NOW, GET BACK TO WORK!" Ariel's superior raised her voice, Ariel remaining silent and continuing to nod before she began choking, tears starting to well in her eyes as she was stuck on her words.  
"I'm sorry, okay!? I just-!" Before she could say anything else, her sister was already gone, scolding another octarian a few feet away for dozing off instead of doing their job as they were told to. "...wanted to talk..." She lowered her hand to her hips, picking up the metal next to her.

" _I'm sorry, Dinah_ _..._ " Ariel thought to herself, feeling like she's disappointed her sister as she attempted to lift the piece of metal despite everything, worthlessly failing to do so due to its weight, as well as her stressed out mood. A lone cough came out her mouth before she spotted a few octotroopers helping each other pick up a metallic girder of some kind, thanks to the forklift one of them was piloting.

This gave her an idea.

"Hey...!" She meekly calls out to them, the troopers along with several others batting an eye towards her as Ariel looked away for a bit, timid as she placed a hand on her arm.  
"...could, could you two, um..." Her words trail off, the octotroopers looking at each other, wondering what's up with her way of speaking before hearing her stutter out a few words she emitted. "...please help me with this?" The octoling's tone turned into that of embarrassment, the octarians grumbling something before acknowledging her request for assistance by driving the forklift towards her.

As they picked up the piece of metal for her, Ariel looked around, noticing most of the octarians having become tired over the course of the construction, apparent with how a lot of them were dozing off, only to be rudely woken up by one of the brainwashed elites, including her sister, while some of them were ventilating their stress out into nothing or onto a nearby co-worker, grabbing the attention of the others surrounding them, or were too exhausted to work on the project forced upon them.

It was slowly getting out of control, a common problem that's been happening the past few weeks since the project began. And, soon enough, she could hear one of her kind arguing with someone around the site along with other octarians growing restless from being pushed around too much. She knew what to expect next, seeing as this happened almost every day at one point or another.

She walked over to the source, deciding to take a peep at who could be yelling, and starting a riot this time around.

"...you know it, though! These freaking elites just won't let us have a break, and I'm getting tired of working all the damn time!" One of the octolings she was watching complained to her accomplice, the other looking stressed thanks to the one whining to her, eyeing one of her superiors as they both approached the edge of the platform.  
Suddenly, without warning, the octoling that was complaining dropped the piece of metal onto her cohort's feet by accident, emanating a sharp, pained yell ringing around the site as she grabbed her accomplice by the neck, finally having had enough before one of the supervisors noticed the two getting physical towards each other, yelling at them to stop with no good results as the two continued to verbally assault each other, the one that complained now begging for her accomplice to stop before being hit square in the face.

Ariel watched the flock of elite octolings running towards the two, supervisors telling their red-tentacled counterparts to knock it off, stop the fight, and get back to work before things got out of hand, pointing tasers at them.  
This, however, incited a reaction from the angrier of the two stomping towards one of her superiors, cracking her knuckles, and threatening her officers with violence, telling them that her co-worker deserved it for annoying her so much. Eventually, the whole argument turned into a fight as the elites were ordered to seize the rebellious octoling for emotional and physical abuse from one of the inkling guards, quickly neutralizing the worker after she landed a solid, hard punch on one of the supervisors as she was taken away to have the same type of shades be put on, thrashing and yelling at her superiors to let her go while the one whom annoyed her just sat there, traumatized by the whole thing.

Ariel never liked to get into conflicts or fights with others, especially against one of her own as she took a step backward after another worker nearby began arguing with one of the guards, happening to be the one that annoyed her accomplice earlier as she was taken away to have those shades the officers had on as punishment for starting a conflict during work.  
This, along with the stress was starting to get sickening for her. Everyone around Ariel, including herself have started succumbing to the effects that have been left ever since their recent defeat and denial of forgiveness from the inklings. Octolings being brainwashed, octarians left and right being stressed out, followed by them being taken away for who knows what...

She needed some time alone, some time away from this place as Ariel began to make a quick, yet, steady walk towards the launch pad in the center, having seen too much during her time spent here these past few weeks.

Just as she stood over the launch pad, though, A reminder came to her as she stared up at the ceiling.  
If she was going outside the dome, she was going to need an umbrella in order to stand a chance of surviving out there in the rain and wind.

She looked around, before finding a nearby weapon station accessible only for octolings, placing a hand on the scanner next to a locked door before it answered with a ding.  
Once the door opened, Ariel enters the building, grabbing a nearby Splat Brella hanging on a row of them, seeing as it could provide some good cover from the rain outside the dome.  
She left soon after, running towards the launch pad, and seeing her brethren taking away another neutralized worker for reasons unknown while some of them were calming down the other workers that have had enough stress to cope with for today, announcing that everyone was getting a break to calm themselves down before work resumed.

As Ariel was about to leave, however, she heard her sister calling out her name, turning her head towards where the voice was coming from, and saw, that she was sprinting towards her, the light on her shades a red color along with a taser in hand.

"ARIEL, STOP RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE!" Without hesitating, the mentioned octoling goes into her octopus form, submerging herself into the pad before launching herself into the sky, shattering a part of the dome in the process as she heard her angry family member below, screaming at her to come back. She could hear her continuing to yell desperately for her name, before it was eventually drowned out among the harsh winds and rain she had now just entered.

* * *

The octoling arrived to her destination a few seconds later, quickly opening up her umbrella upon emerging out of the pad as the cold, biting wind and rain already took an effect on her as she started walking through the floating island known as Slimeskin Garrison.

Even though she felt relieved to have left her workplace, thoughts of her angry sister threatening her were plaguing Ariel as she toured through the empty sector that used to thrive with octarians before they, along with the other inhabitants of each sector were forced to move to Cephalon HQ, and help make it easier for inkling tourists to look around the place until the project as a whole was finished.

And it's all thanks to that stupid DJ that ruined any good relations with the inklings that forced Ariel and her people to live this miserable, stress-induced life of theirs.

Compared to the industrial sounds of machinery and brainwashed octolings ordering everyone around, the sound of pouring, wet rain and crackling thunder was soothing for her ears as she was able find some cover nearby, sitting on a slightly rocky, yet wet surface underneath her umbrella. This should of been a good spot, had it not been for the cold wind blowing onto her from the side, causing the umbrella to move a bit from the force, as well as the wet ground below as she huddled down into a fetal position and tried to warm herself up.  
It felt like this storm has been going on forever since it first came days ago, and she barely had anywhere else to go, aside from the other islands around her. Though, assuming the closer she would get to Tentakeel Outpost, the more guarded the other sectors would be as inklings wouldn't allow any octarians anywhere near that island housing the entrance to their home.

She felt like she was stumped in her position, trapped, even. She had nowhere else to go.

Ariel soon realized, that the cover she had wasn't going to be enough in keeping her warm. She needed that crucial part if she was going to be out here, as well as proper shelter before she stood up, her whole body trembling from the overpowering gust of wind as she began to walk again, towards the launch pad closer to the inklings' hideout in a desperate attempt to find a good place to stay for the night.

That's when she feels the cold biting down on her, like a predator ambushing its prey at the right time as a volley of rain comes into contact with her after she loses a bit of control of her umbrella, forcing out a shriek from her as she dives down in front of a wall near the launch pad.

Folding her arms while covering herself, Ariel shakily breathes onto her skin in an attempt to warm herself up, only to no avail, making it all the more worse as much as she begins to feel even colder from the wind blowing onto her, her umbrella almost being lost from her grip as she tightens her hand around it even more.  
" _Damn it, should of grabbed yourself some armor and a better umbrella!_ " She thinks before proceeding to let out a cry for help, her voice echoing through the canyon before she buries her face with her one hand, sobbing as her vision started to fade in and out as she looked at her surroundings, noticing just now a security camera of some kind planted on the wall, looking straight at her.

After regaining enough of her sight, she squinted her eyes at the device, wondering what could possibly be monitoring the area before hearing a distant splash where the launch pad is, followed by distant footsteps along with an umbrella opening. Could it be help? Did someone actually hear her cry for help? Was someone actually watching the security cameras at this time of night?  
The octoling's questions were soon answered, followed by her face going from hopeful to that of horror as the one she saw what hopped down to her was a yellow, short-tentacled inkling with red eyes, wearing a green jacket of some sorts along with black pants with a stripe of her tentacle's color, as well as black-colored hiking boots, the inkling wielding an umbrella of some sorts similar to Ariel's as she turned to face her.

Both remained in silence, their eyes looking at each other as Ariel couldn't say anything at what she saw.

What exactly was standing before her, was the one who single-handedly foiled the plans of the octarians, her name unknown to even the Squidbeak Splatoon. Always silent, yet relentless, just like a serial killer on their quest to kill anyone standing in their way, as well as the one that saved the Great Zapfish and one of the Squid Sisters whom were kidnapped by Octavio.

" _No..._ " Ariel thought to herself as she felt more terrified than she ever was.  
This, was none other than Agent 4. The one that every octarian was afraid of encountering, especially after the defeat of Octavio.

They just continued looking at each other, the inkling seeming to be analyzing Ariel as the octoling just watched in suspense, confused as to why this cold-blooded squid didn't decide to immediately splat her like the other octarians she's encountered. She exactly didn't attack the inkling like her brethren did, which might be a solid explanation for her to come up with as Ariel lets out a sigh, looking down on the surface, not caring what's going to happen to her.

"What are you waiting for!?" Ariel suddenly raised her voice, just loud enough for the agent to hear her, the inkling's brows perking up at the tone of her voice.  
"Just finish me off! It's what you do, right!?" She falls silent, simply analyzing the handle of the umbrella as the inkling's footsteps could be heard approaching her. Looking back up with a look of anger, seeing the agent aiming her weapon at her, a subtle look of concern on her as Ariel grasped her hands around the handle of her umbrella, shutting her eyes tight, and preparing to be splatted by what she thought was a remorseless killer.

Instead, she heard the sound of an umbrella opening as she opened her eyes, noticing the inkling standing next to her now, staring at the light coming from the horizon being the dome surrunding the octarians' headquarters. Even when Ariel was this far away, she could still imagine the sounds of elite octolings ordering around the octarians, thanks to those shades that were put on them as punishment for disobeying the creators of the project.

Ariel remained quiet, not knowing how to react to this approach of Agent 4 as the inkling looked at her again, a blank, yet, worried look on her as Ariel faced away from her, anticipating every move to what this unpredictable... "thing" might do to her as it approached her slowly, but carefully.  
The octoling was ready to move away from her out of disgust. Hearing those dreaded footsteps alone, made her want to run as far away as possible from the agent, afraid of the chance that she might be splatted by her.

Just when she was about to get up to run, she felt a hand gently touch her shoulder.  
At first, fear was her reaction as she prepared to aim her weapon at the inkling. But then, a warm feeling replaced it.  
A warm feeling fillng her heart with it as she slowly looked back at the inkling, seeing a hint of a reassuring smile forming on the agent's face as she covers both herself, and Ariel with the umbrella, trying her best to block the rain pouring from their side.

" _What...?_ " Ariel's mouth was open slightly in confusion, completely puzzled by what she was seeing.  
Agent 4, whom she had feared so long of meeting up with... was sparing her? " _She's sparing me...?_ "  
She couldn't stop asking that same question repeatedly to herself out loud, wondering why in the world someone like Agent 4 that has splatted countless octarians like herself would lend her of all octolings a hand in a nightmarish weather like this. " _...But why?_ "

Surely, this had to be a trap. She couldn't trust this inkling, considering all the damage it, and its people have done to the octarians. She wanted to reject the creature standing in her way, and just splat the inkling out of revenge and spite with her brella. This hatred for the inkling tried to consume her mind, yet, another part of Ariel told her to just come along with the young agent, seeing as she had nowhere else to go, and that the inkling might lead her to a proper shelter to stay for the night.  
Of course, she could always go back to Cephalon HQ, but that would mean having to be captured, and taken away to have a pair of hypnotic shades put on her, making her a mindless drone like the other octolings as she sighed at Agent 4's decision. The inkling tried comforting her, even with the inability to speak except for muttering out a few sounds here and there.

Ariel was, for a lack of better word, lost in her thoughts before she started walking along with the inkling, trying to keep herself from crying out of embarrassment. Ariel could tell from this girl's eyes, that she was sent here to help her, and looked to be genuinely concerned as to why an octoling would be sitting out here in the open, especially with deadly drops of rain, and ice-cold winds at this time of night.

They eventually reached the launch pad together, Agent 4 telling the octoling through sign language to cover her as she started tampering with the pad slightly to make it go towards another location instead of Beaker's Depot. Once she was finished, she turned into her squid form, and sent herself flying towards her destination.  
Not knowing what to do, Ariel decides to follow the inkling for her own sake, entering the pad as well, and sending herself into the sky towards a lit-up island.


	2. First Impressions

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter II: First Impressions**_

Upon arriving to the destination Agent 4 went to, Ariel stood still, surprised by where the inkling agent had led her to: Tentakeel Outpost.  
The only sector of Octo Canyon that led to the capital known as Inkopolis, and the main base of operations for the Squidbeak Splatoon. She had never been to this sector before, especially since the octarians were completely banned around this area by the creators of the project.

She saw the young agent beckoning her to follow them to a cabin of some sorts with a gilten, phonograph-like mechanism on the top. Despite all the weather, the building and the mechanism looked to be in a decent condition, much to the mild surprise of Ariel as she also saw several lights coming from the windows with a figure inside, looking down at something as Ariel followed the young inkling in pursuit through the harsh winds.

When they got behind the shack, the octoling noticed a backdoor leading inside, Agent 4 turning towards her, telling Ariel to wait here through hand signals as she entered inside.

While waiting, the octoling could hear some talking coming from within along with sounds from the inkling girl, the conversation sounding like a bit of harmless banter before Ariel heard the older of the two voices sounding confused, patiently waiting for Agent 4 to come back, and let her in before she heard the door next to her open.  
Instead of her stepping out, though, was a white-tentacled inkling wearing a black kimono with shades of green and grey with colored triangles embedded onto the bottom and middle, holding what looked to be a regular parasol, looking more older and mature than Agent 4 as her initial look of surprise turns into a tired frown upon her eyes setting on Ariel, obviously having distaste of seeing an octarian here.

She was more afraid of this inkling's presence than Agent 4's, knowing that this was one of the Squid Sisters, the one named Marie that held a grudge against the octarians for what they did to her cousin when she was kidnapped. She was the green to Callie's pink before Marie turned away with an annoyed, tired sigh, only uttering 3 words that could only be described as resentful.

"Come on in..." The pop star mumbled, tired in her voice before going back in as Ariel warily following her inside.  
It looked much cozier on the inside than it did initially. That, along Ariel spotting a sliding door that sparked her curiosity a bit before Marie grabbed herself a nearby tea cup on the counter, pouring some of the contents from within the kettle as she sat in front of a table to the left in front of the window she looked at earlier, seemingly ignoring Ariel's presence as the octoling cleared her throat, grabbing the idol's attention.

"Hey... sorry for coming and disturbing you, I just..." She looks down, away from the squid sister until Marie let out a yawn.

"Please, cut the apologies, octoslob..." The inkling said after rubbing her eyes, her voice sounding tranquil, yet cross as she stirred her tea, staring at it as though was entranced by the liquid's movement. "Just what were you doing, running away from work like that?! You're not supposed to do that stuff, especially at this time!" Ariel could tell she wanted to shout at her, but couldn't, as if she was trying not to wake someone up as the octoling looked down out of fear, Ariel remaining quiet before letting out a heavy exhale in response.

Marie simply stared blankly at her before resuming with drinking from her cup of tea, as if Ariel wasn't in front of her.

"I..." Ariel barely managed to say something, only falling quiet as Marie looked at the window next to the two, watery rain coating it as she stared out into the darkness at something, cup in hand, trembling at whatever she looked at. "...I just don't like working on this project anymore..." She whimpered as she sat down on a nearby chair in front of the squid sister, looking down as Marie let out a humph, annoyed.

"Too bad, can't really do anything about it..." Marie responded while placing a hand over her head, looking down at the table while tapping her finger on it repeatedly with the other, staring into the contents of her tea.

"Please, just help me!" Ariel suddenly raised her voice, much to Marie and Agent 4's shock as their attention was shifted to her. "I can't stand working there, and being shouted at-"  
"I CAN'T! And be quiet, will you?!" Marie raised her voice in return at the octoling, silencing her as Agent 4 looked shaken by her mentor's sudden change of attitude. "Look, do I have to repeat myself to you again!? Because you're just sitting here, wasting my time at this ungodly hour!" She got up from her seat, placing her hands on the table, sternly looking at Ariel as her shadow loomed over the octoling. "I. Can't. Do. ANYTHING about it, even if I wanted to, okay!? I wish I could, but-" Before she could say anything else, everyone could hear the sound of groaning coming from the room covered by the sliding door. A short-tempered sigh escaped Marie, who rolled her eyes while the sound of footsteps could be heard from within.

"Great... we just woke her up..." Marie mumbled, irritated before the doors slid open.

"Marie, what the heck...? Why are you-" The other squid sister, Callie, wearing what seemed to be a modified version of the shades she once wore, peeked her head from behind the wall. She sounded just as tired as her cousin before noticing Ariel, quickly taking her sunglasses off before stepping out, wearing some night gown in place of her Squid Sister outfit, though, it had the same color motif.  
"Marie!? Why is there an octoling?!" She exclaimed, confused and shocked as Ariel didn't know how to respond to her out of fear, turning to look at Marie who was shaking her head at her, disapprovingly before looking at her cousin.

"Agent 4 and I found them bawling at Slimeskin Garrison while I was looking through the cameras, and she took her here when I told her otherwise..." She paused for a moment, looking at Agent 4 who was just staring away from her, ashamed of herself for not following her instructions. "Anyways, I heard from this depressed trainwreck, that she didn't like working on this project any more, so to speak." Marie rested her head on the table, her eyes feeling heavy as everyone were quiet aside from the clash of thunder and downpour outside.

Callie noticed, just how miserable Ariel looked from her expression alone along with her body language, as well as how soaked her clothes were.

The younger of the two continued staring before walking over to Marie, who proceeded to whisper something to her that Ariel couldn't hear, the white-tentacled idol looking somewhat hesitant, letting out a quiet " _What!? You're kidding, right!?_ " before Callie walked behind her, closing the door to the shack that Ariel forgot to do as the idol looked at her, slowly proceeding to sit next to her afterward.

"Hey, you okay?" Callie asked, the octoling remaining still and unmoving as she kept staring down at the table, away from Callie and the others.

Even in her somewhat tired state, the squid sister tried to be as polite as possible to the octoling, wanting to try her best to comfort her. Try as she might, though, she couldn't get a response from her, until she and the others could hear the sound of someone's stomach rumbling, happening to come from the octoling as Ariel placed a hand on her belly, wincing slightly at the pain. Since the past few weeks, she hadn't been eating a whole lot.

"Gee, you must be hungry..." The idol muttered before carefully placing her hand on the octarian's shoulder, to which Ariel promptly moved away from her upon touch. "Oh! Cod, sorry, I didn't mean t-!"  
"Please..." Ariel begged as she cut her off, her voice sounding shaky as she looked at everyone. "...it hurts..." The octoling mumbled before looking back down, clutching her stomach as Callie got up from her chair, sprinting towards the fridge near the kettle before opening it, taking out a large soda cup of some kind with a straw attached along with what looked to be sushi rolls.

"I got this for you! Or do you want something else?" Callie said, holding the fridge open as the octoling looked up out of curiosity, noticing what the squid sister was doing as she got off her chair, walking over to analyze the contents within.

It seemed to have a good variety of food and beverages for her to choose from, ranging from sushi, fried food, desserts, pizzas, sodas, drinkable water, and much more. Her stomach rumbled again, begging for whatever food she could pick from within.

She remained silent before half-smiling, proceeding to grab two items from inside, both appearing to look like sausages with mustard and ketchup on it, as well as hints of a green, gelatinous substance underneath it. The 'bread' looked to be made out of fried lobsters sandwiching the meat in the center as she went over to the counter to grab herself a plate before sitting in front of Marie again, staring at the delicacy in front of her before eagerly grabbing, and taking a bite out of it with her hand as Callie watched.

The octoling paused once her taste buds came into contact with it. The fried lobster, and sausage's salty, grilled taste filled her mind with euphoria and happiness along with the desire for more, not hesitating to take another bite, enjoying it as Callie smiled at this. Marie was simply staring at her phone with an uninterested look while Agent 4 sat next to her mentor after checking the fridge herself, having grabbed what looked to be some kind of waffle with chocolate on it along with a fried lobster on the top similar to hers.

"Holy mackerel, this is so good!" The octoling praised before looking up at everyone. "Where did all you get this?" Ariel asked curiously as she savored the taste with every bite she took, Agent 4 taking out some tickets from her jacket's pocket before placing them on the table as the Squid Sisters noticed them.

"Agent 4 bought them from Crusty Sean a few days ago after she was done with her power egg job." Marie answered bluntly, seeming to not care for Ariel's question while she was busy playing some kind of game on it out of boredom. "They're, uh... kinda squid-tastic, in my opinion..." The squid sister said awkwardly, seemingly busy with her game as Ariel didn't care for what Marie said, taking another bite from the middle while Callie was dipping a sushi roll on some of the soy next to her, ready to eat it before the lights flickered for a moment, grabbing the attention of everyone.  
For a moment, they thought the power was going out, but resumed their little discussion about the food they were eating before the whole place went dark seconds later without any warning.

"Oh, come on, you've GOT to be kidding me!" Marie got up from her seat, now sounding more angry than annoyed as she went inside the room Callie was sleeping in.  
Ariel thought for a moment that Marie's frustration had won over her before she came back with a flashlight in her hand, along with a few candles with inkling markings on them before placing them near the three.

"Power went out?" Callie asked, watching Marie lighting up one of the candles before she spun around, clearly unamused by Callie pointing out the obvious.

"What do you think, captain obvious?" She asked, rubbing her eyes as she let out another yawn after lighting the other sticks of ignitable wick. "Forget it, I'll get it back up tomorrow..." She seemed to be texting someone on her phone near the sink now, Callie curiously starting at her cousin texting while Ariel got up herself to look, only for Marie to deactivate her phone upon her getting too close to viewing what she was typing.  
"Sorry, can't let you know who I'm texting, octoling. Go back, and finish your food." She ordered, waiting for her to get back in her seat before Ariel furrowed her brows at her, slightly angered by Marie's constant, unwelcome attitude to her.

"I have a name, you know!" The octoling scowled at her, staring at the idol as she went back to texting to whoever it was.

"And? Does it look like I care?" Marie raised an eyebrow at her, still focused on the phone before Callie got up, and gave her a slight shove.  
"What!?" She looked at her, looking as though she was about to start an argument with her cousin as Callie looked back at the octoling.

"Sorry, Marie's kinda been like this since I was brainwashed..." Her words trailed off as she went back to her seat, stuffing a rectangular-sized block of rice into her mouth with what looked to be like tuna on it. "...Mph, I forgot to ask...!" She swallowed the piece of sushi before continuing. "...What's your name?"

"Ariel! My name's Ariel!" She replied excitedly, finally glad that one of the two cousins seemed to care about knowing something about her.  
"Ariel? That's actually a nice name!" Callie smiled as she introduced herself soon after, forcing Marie to do the same despite the older of the two declining at first while Agent 4 remained quiet, but shook the octoling's hand as Callie introduced her for Ariel.  
Once the introductions were done with, the octoling looked at Callie, who was stretching herself a bit, letting out a yawn in the process. "So, Ariel..." She paused for a moment, waiting for her yawn to go away. "So, Ariel. Can you tell us why you were outside in a storm like this, and not inside Cephalon HQ?" Callie asked, moving the sushi rolls to the side as she looked at her.

Ariel did not know how to explain her reason why, thanks to all the stress and discomfort she had to deal with from the past weeks or so. Images of her sister and cohorts flashed through her head before she placed the delicacy she was eating back on the plate, moving it to the side.  
"..." She looked down, her smile being replaced with a look of remorse was Callie noticed this before looking back at Marie, who was still busy texting whomever it was, looking annoyed by the conversation while Agent 4 looked at Ariel, a piece of the waffle in her mouth.

"Oh, um... that's fine!" Callie replied understandingly, examining one of the sushi rolls she was about to eat. "You wanna talk about it tomorrow, then?"

"Sure, if you want..." Ariel muttered before laying her elbow on the table, yawning as well while Marie walked over to the two, taking a seat next to her cousin as she cleared her throat before Ariel cut her off. "Could I sleep here tonight?"

"What?! No-" Marie answered her cousin placed a hand over her lips, taking her by surprise.  
"Of course!" Callie replied happily, Marie swiping away her cousin's hand and looking at them two in disgust.  
"Callie, are you mad!? You're letting this random octoling sleep with us?!" She raised her voice as an answer, to which Callie fell quiet as she looked at Ariel again before turning toward her cousin.  
"We can't just leave her out there, though! Look how soaked she is!" She replied as Marie looked at Ariel again, a feeling of doubt swirling in her head before her expression became serious.

"Callie, she is NOT sleeping with us! Do you understand?" She replied, sounding as though she's now properly woken up from her sleep-induced state. "This has to be a plan made by Octavio to free him, and hypnotize you again with those stupid shades of his! She's sleeping outside for the night, whether it's a rainstorm or not!" She began walking over to Ariel, a scornful look on her as Marie closed in on her, the octoling backing away before letting out a scream upon the idol grabbing her by the wrist, yelling for Callie and Agent 4 to help as the former runs to lock the door.

"MARIE, STOP!" Callie yelled, blocking the door in front of Marie as her cousin peered at her, taking a step forward.  
"Callie, move away from the door." The older of the two requested, putting a hand on Callie's shoulder, wanting to move her away while Callie stood her ground.  
"I WON'T! Give her a chance, Marie! You're attacking her when she didn't even attack us!" Callie begged, her cousin hearing the octoling's desperate requests for mercy as she eyed Agent 4 looking at her as well, afraid of her violent behavior towards the octarian before she eventually let go of Ariel, pushing her away towards the table everyone sat at earlier.

"Oh, I'M attacking her!?" She asked, her tired mind having frustrated and clouded her mind too much as she looked at Ariel and Agent 4, then back at Callie, her consciousness slipping away into darkness as she felt something in her head spinning. "Ugh, FINE! She can stay here for tonight, but ONLY for tonight!" The older squid sister replied angrily before Callie could say anything, looking as though she had a headache with a hand of hers on her own tentacles, walking towards the bedroom, only to stop in her tracks.  
"You don't seem to have a problem with that Marina girl coming over to visit with Pearl, you know." Callie saw her cousin cringe at her comment, Marie only muttering a passive-aggressive 'good night' to Callie and the others before slamming the wall behind her shut.

"Are you alright, Ariel!?" Callie ran over to her, the octoling standing against the wall with her hands on it, quiet with the exception of the few occasional sobs escaping her as Callie helped try to comfort her along with Agent 4, Ariel continuously choking on her own words, trying to utter a sentence regarding Marie, but failing to do as Callie hushed her, patting her on the shoulder in an attempt to pacify her as Ariel hugged her for comfort.  
"Hey hey, calm down, Marie's not gonna do that to you again, okay?" She heard her fall quiet after a while, letting go of her as Ariel removed some of the stains she had on her cheeks.  
"Look, you can sleep on that couch tonight if you want. I'll let Agent 4 stay here if you need anyone to talk to." Callie looked at the agent, the inkling nodding understandingly at what Callie told her what to do before the squid sister drank what remained in her cup, tossing it into a garbage can in the corner afterward.

"I guess..." Ariel muttered, letting out a sniff while Callie pulled down some of the blinds, the only thing illuminating the room now being the candle in the middle of the table along with the other on the kitchen counter. "I'll see you tomorrow, then...?" She asked while laying down on where she should be sleeping for tonight, feeling as though her eyes were drying up from all the sobbing earlier.

"Yeah, I'll wake you up in the morning before they come, alright?" She walked over to the door Marie closed, Ariel's ears perking up slightly at her response as she looked at Callie, confused as to who 'they' are.

"They...?" She raised an eyebrow, worried as Callie paused midway with pulling the door open before looking at Ariel, no longer wearing that comforting smile on her face.

"The people that started this project." She answered, Ariel feeling like her blood went a little bit cold upon hearing her answer. "Marie hasn't said much, but she's told me, that they, and their leader are coming to check on the progress tomorrow." She noticed the look on Ariel's face, understanding her fear of those people as she saw her holding onto a pillow.  
From what Ariel understood, it was they who were responsible for brainwashing her sister. Having taken her, and her team of elite octolings away for being a part of helping Octavio, and trying to splat Agent 4 during the whole Zapfish ordeal.

But their leader, she never had the chance of meeting, or catch a glimpse of, even during work hours when contributors to the project were watching her and the others.

"Hey, don't worry!" Callie reassured her, snapping the octoling out of her fears as she looked at the idol. "I'll hide you in our bedroom tomorrow, deal?" She asked after sliding open the frames leading to the bedroom Marie was in, looking back at Ariel who nodded shyly.  
"If you want, I could talk with Marie about keeping you here if working on that project bothers you so much." Ariel looked, and smiled at the squid sister, feeling her whole body becoming relaxed as she rested her head on one of the couch's cushions.  
"I'd like that, Callie..." Ariel replied before they bid each other a good night, just as the squid sister pulled the frames over her, leaving only Agent 4 and Ariel together. The inkling girl watched the octoling as she stared back at her, unblinking with only her phone and the candles illuminating the cabin they were in.

"So..." Ariel muttered nervously, trying to break the silence between the two. "...you're gonna watch me tonight, or what?"  
The inkling nodded, placing her chair next to the couch as she grabbed a nearby plush of a zapfish with a blue cap laying on the shelf, tossing it on the octoling as a squeaking sound emanated from it upon landing on Ariel's tentacles, as well as when it dropped on her belly.

She let out a slight chuckle in response, caressing and squeezing it repeatedly as Agent 4 smiled at this friendly octoling being happy, unlike how pathetic she looked when they saw each other at Slimskin Garrison earlier tonight.

"Thanks, 4..." She muttered before rolling to the side, staring into the plushy's eyes as she fell asleep soon after.

* * *

 **Later, in the middle of the night...**

Agent 4 was looking through her phone, reading about the latest news at Inkopolis before stumbling onto a report that most of the octarians have now been removed from Inkopolis with the exception of Marina along with some other octarians that were in hiding, who, along with Pearl were currently speaking against the new law the government has made regarding about banning octarians.  
She scrolled down, looking at the pictures of inklings along with Marina and Pearl forming a riot at Inkopolis Square against this new rule, a slight look of concern forming on the inkling's face as she stared at Ariel again, worried what would happen if the project's creator or any of their cohorts got a hold of her.

She would have none of that whatsoever, especially against an octoling she met that had looked so alone. She had heard Callie and Marie in their bedrooms talking with each other about Ariel, discussing about what to do with her with Marie's voice having a twinge of regret in it, most likely as a result of having been so harsh on the octoling earlier today before the two went completely quiet.

She fell asleep herself a few moments later, having set her alarm to go off at around 6 in the morning in case 'they' would show up earlier than expected.


	3. Lazarus

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter III: Lazarus**_

Nightfall was looming over the Lost Outpost, a recent location for the latest salmon runs, which was usually quiet for the most part during the nightly hours, key word being: "most part" as tonight was an uncommon exception. It was absolute mayhem with inks of of glowing pink and toxic green covering the outpost, an endless horde of mutated salmonids charging towards the center of the map despite the dark fog obscuring everyone's vision, wielding pans and letting out endless cackling noises before getting splatted by a paint roller from behind.

"COMING THROUGH!" The inkling in the ink spoke, carrying a golden egg with a bony embryo of some kind as they swam through the liquid, heading towards the basket that was filled with the same golden eggs while they avoided the salmon army whacking their pans at the ink.

This was initially a big mistake for the inkling as they were surrounded in a singular, pink spot with salmonids surrounding them, ready to splat the poor squid for getting cornered before a humanoid figure wearing orange overalls and a green and white cap emerged out, leaping into the air as a transparent circle formed underneath them, followed by a loud explosion of ink being the last thing the vicious creatures saw before getting splatted.  
A lone, pink-tentacled inkling boy sporting a tied ponytail stood in place of what used to be hordes of salmon as the power eggs that were dropped flew over to him, the inkling swimming towards the basket and dropping the golden egg in it.

" _Well! I reckon that's that!_ " He thought before placing the roller on his shoulder, checking if his team had met their quota. He was satisfied at the result, showing that they have as he smiled at this, just before three more inklings came out of their squid forms and tossed some of the golden eggs they gathered into the basket.

"Nice work, everyone!" The boy wielding a charger complimented, looking to be about two years older than everyone else before they heard the alarm multiple times signalling a series of boss salmonid, hearing the nearby roar of a Steelhead as slow, heavy footsteps could be heard coming towards them, followed by mechanical rattling signalling a Steel Eel, and engines revving up.

"Alright, you three, time to end this! We got half a minute on the clock, so let's go! Especially you, bro!" Their apparent leader said, eyeing the only boy aside him before they swam towards the large salmonid, a bomb forming on its device attached to the head as the inklings focused all their fire on it, avoiding the explosive it threw at them before it was splatted, three golden eggs laying in its place before the sound of their charger user got splatted by the Steel Eel, a mechanical, snake-like creature with red eyes having appeared behind the three as it proceeded to go after one of the girls wielding a set of splat dualies.

The boss salmonids were overwhelming everyone with this final rush, especially with deploying multiple other bosses as the inkling with the roller splatted every salmonid that stood in his way between him and his teammate, barely dodging an attack from Maws before smacking his roller on the life saver, reviving his crewmate.

"Thanks, La-"  
"There's no time for thank yous, Thad!" He dodged another bite from the large salmonid that tried to chomp him up, splatting the monstrous beast after a good few swings with his roller. "Get those eggs, and GO!" His co-worker followed the inkling's command before grabbing one of the eggs, heading towards the basket with the others while the boy wielding the roller threw a splat bomb at a nearby Flyfish, who was ready to unleash its missiles on him and his team as one of its launchers were destroyed in the process by the bomb.

Just as he was about to throw another bomb and finish off the salmonid after dodging the missiles, he felt something hard smack him from the side before letting out a yell upon being splatted by the flock of salmon, failing to hear the cohock that approached him from behind as he started to call out for his team's aid once his lifesaver came out of the ink, noticing them getting cornered by the salmonids.

" _Damn it, you idiot!_ " He cursed himself as he started moving himself towards his team, hearing one of the girls being splatted. 10 seconds remained on the clock as he heard his brother getting splatted again soon after.  
" _COME ON! JUST RUN!_ " He would say that if he had a mouth, yelling at them as loudly as possible before one of the last remaining girls turned on her special: An inkjet, taking off from the ground just before the salmonids could manage to splat, and wipe out the crew as they whacked at the air, trying to hit the girl.

Finally, the salmonids retreated back into the waters upon their numbers diminishing from the girl using her special on them and splatting them from above, the egg basket disappearing along with them as everyone realized, that they managed to succeed in catching enough golden eggs, and managing to hold off the salmon run before they were wiped out as the boys and the other girl were revived by the one wielding a Tri-Slosher, celebrating their barely-earned victory while the oldest member of the crew looked relieved to have helped his team, despite being splatted the most due to careless behavior.

" _ **That right there was too close my likin', you four.**_ " A gruff voice spoke from their radio, the inklings recognizing it as their boss: Mr. Grizz, the head of Grizzco Industries. " _ **Well done, though. That's the last of 'em for tonight.**_ " They heard him sounding pleased with the results before a horn blared off in the distance.  
" _ **Hmph, alright... back on the boat, everyone. It's gettin' late here.**_ " The group of inklings did what he told them to, super-jumping to the nearby ship that came to pick them up from the shore nearby.

The first two waves proved to not be that difficult for them, having collected over double the amount of eggs, even tripling the amount during a rush, despite the darkness. The last one faltered slightly due to all the chaos that ensued with the fog, making it twice as difficult for them, having to use the glow of the golden eggs and their ink as a light source along with the floodlights coming from the decrepit building in the center in order to get to the basket.

" **76** **eggs. That right there is a remarkable haul, true profreshionals, especially at this hour. THAT, is the kind of effort that I'd like to see!** " They smiled at this, high-fiving each other as the two male inklings sat next to each other, proudly grinning at their effort today. " **I'm expectin' you all to get some rest for your next shift tomorrow. Your payment's waitin' for ya outside the window when you come back here, then you're free to go home.** " Mr. Grizz finished as the crew sat together, exhausted from tonight's work as the younger of the two male inklings broke the quiet atmosphere between everyone after letting wiping off some of the sweat from his face.

"Heh, you all should of seen what I did when I was surrounded by those creatures!" The younger of the two boys excitedly exclaimed, Thad smiling at his brother as he folded his arms, staring out into the stars relaxingly.

"You're damn right, bro." He muttered to him, the girls looking at his younger sibling, whose body was shaking out of the exhilaration he had. "I swear, Laz, you never fail to amaze me, especially the girls over there with these new specials I can't get used to." The girls smiled, one of them chuckling while the other was blushing at the comment Thad made, especially Lazarus' cheeks turning pink as he nervously smiled at them, looking back at Thad again.

"Suuure..." He looked away, remaining quiet as his brother moved his arm over Laz' shoulder as they looked at the night sky together, the moon lighting up the water below them as they saw the somewhat dark skies looming over Inkopolis.

"Hey," One of the girls got up, having noticed the skies looming over Inkopolis as well. "am I the only one thinking, that it's raining, or what?" Lazarus and his brother staring out to the city, analyzing the skies as they got up upon spotting a flash of light. A lightning strike.

"Yeah, seems like it." Lazarus commented as the sound of barely audible thunder was heard, the pair of boys remaining in their seats as he looked at his friend and the other girl after staring at the city for a while.  
"Chloe?" He looked at her, the long-tentacled inkling going by that name looking back at him.

"Yeah?" She asked him.

"You feel like walking home with me tonight?" Chloe was seemingly taken aback by his question, her eyes widening a bit along with her eyebrows going up a bit before a happy expression overtook her.  
"Sure! I wouldn't mind!" She answered, looking back at the distant capital while Thad was smirking at his brother, finding the interactions between the two cute and worthy enough to poke a little fun with his brother when they get back home to Inkopolis.

* * *

Chloe's assumption was right when they got back to Inkopolis. It was raining cats and dogs, in the sense that it was raining heavily, forcing the group of inklings to run inside the Grizzco building and into their changing rooms, taking off their work clothes in favor of their regular, everyday clothes. Laz put on his Layered Anchor LS along with his Squid Satin Jacket, Sunset Orca Hi-Tops, and some warm Noise Cancelers. He didn't use them that much, except for cold days, and when the weather in Inkopolis was just going to be like this.

When he got out, he already saw Thad and Chloe standing near the entrance, his brother wearing his legendary cap along with LE Soccer Shoes, striped pants and a varsity jacket while Chloe was wearing an Annaki Drive Tee, Purple Sea Slugs and a Squid Hairclip, both of them talking with each other while Chloe held onto a Splat Brella before they heard Lazarus walking over to them.

"Hey, I'm here!" Lazarus called out, the inkling girl and his brother turning their attention away from each other towards him instead.

"Oh, Laz! Took you a while, didn't it?" She moved towards him, standing right next to him with an open brella as Thad smirked at the two, Lazarus clearly looking at him with an expression screaming: " _B_ _ro, come on! You're making me embarrassed!_ " as he let out a small laugh at the thought of the two, taking the perfect opportunity to start his daily teasing.  
"'ey, so, when are you two gonna start gettin' all romantic and stuff?" He asked slyly, Lazarus' and Chloe's faces turning red out of embarrassment, especially getting a reaction out of his younger brother as Lazarus let out a muffled: "Oh my cod..."  
Thad let out a short laugh at the sight of this, knowing that both of them have been close friends for a while since they first started working together at Grizzco, starting when they first met at Marooner's Bay a month ago, both of them having in common, that they weren't the biggest fans of league and ranked battles, as well as turf wars.

They didn't necessarily hate it, but they didn't like participating the sport that much unless it was a fun hangout, if they had to earn a few more coins to sustain themselves and their families, or during a Splatfest where they would be dancing with each other, and helping their teams win.

"THAD, can you...! You're embarrassing me, RIGHT in front of her!" Chloe couldn't help, but chortle at her friend's harmless outburst, her cheeks still red from Thad's teasing as the two brothers bickered at each other, eventually stopping once Lazarus had enough and looked away, his head having turned into a teal color.

Soon enough, the other girl came out, sporting some School Shoes, a Choco Layered LS and a Straw Boater, looking as though she had struggled a bit with putting on the socks and shirt, judging by the slight, rough look her clothes had.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to take so long!" She apologized, her friends noticing the rather funny look on her clothes.

"Lily, why are your clothes-"  
"They are inside out, because I didn't have time!" She replied before Chloe could finish her question, sounding as though she was in a hurry as the group of inklings stepped out of the building together, just before the entrance leading into Grizzo Industries closed down, barring anyone from entering or leaving as they went to the nearby window to collect their payment for the day. Some of them got coins, tickets to the Crust Bucket, and other prizes including a shirt and headlamp from the company they worked for from the gachapons they opened.

"Hm, neat!" Lazarus analyzed the headlamp, trading his old one for coins while he put the new one on along with his earmuffs, already finding it useful to wear during rainy days as Thad split off from the group once they walked down to the Square.

"Well, Laz, I'll see ya and the girls tomorrow!" His brother said before walking further down the Galleria, having pulled open an umbrella of his own.

"Wait, Thad!" Lazarus called, his brother turning to face him and the girls.  
"What's up, bro?" He eyed his brother, seeing Lazarus walking towards him with the girls talking behind him.  
"Can you... can you please say hi to mom for me?" Lazarus asked somewhat shyly, Thad smiling at his brother, knowing that he and his mother didn't spend that much time with each other since he got his own apartment after moving to Inkopolis Square, and even then, they still cared about each other deeply. A sigh escaped him as he looked at Lazarus.

"Sure thing, bro. I'll tell her you'll be sleeping with that hot bird over there tonight." He winked at Chloe as she began to look uncomfortable of him, Lazarus rolling his eyes annoyingly at his brother's perverted sense of humor before going back to the girls, waving a mundane goodbye to him as he, Chloe and Lily began walking to the apartment building where they lived while Thad went the other way.

As they walked, Lazarus and Chloe could hear Lily's footsteps behind them fading away before hearing her mutter something out loud, seeing her looking through a newspaper of some sorts she found inside a bus stop.

"Lily?" Chloe uttered, grabbing her friend's attention.  
"Huh?" She looked at her and Lazarus, both waiting for her as she sprinted towards them, holding onto what she found as all three of them looking at it in interest as they walked on the sidewalk towards their apartment complex.

"Whatcha reading there?" Lazarus asked as he looked at the contents on the newspaper, the three of them stopping so he and Lily's friend could read it together.  
"Something about Off the Hook's riot this evening." Lazarus and Chloe looked at what she was pointing at, looking at the article that was displayed on the front page.

They saw what looked to be Marina and Pearl along with a group of inklings rioting against the new law that had been created by the government recently, the headlines mentioning how the inklings around the trio's age supported the duo known as Off the Hook in this new campaign of theirs to let octarians live in Inkopolis once more, and that it wouldn't be the same without the octoling they all seemed to have taken a liking to.

Lazarus felt a bit of shame hanging over him after reading this, a sigh escaping from his mouth.

His mother, who worked for Inkopolis' government, told him before the law was created, that she would be assigned to start keeping the octarians under control at Octo Canyon along with her accomplices, being in charge of security and capturing any octarian that tried to escape into Inkopolis, as well as calming anyone down that supported against the idea of banning the octarians until it was lifted.  
And it was because of this, that he and Thad had been spending so little time with her lately, seeing as this mattered more to her than it did them, preferring to have his brother keep a close eye on him while she was away for a week or so, considering he was capable of the job as an S rank in all subjects, and a level 50 in Turf Wars.

When they did interact with her, she would tell him very little about what happened at work, only telling him that the octarians were doing a good job with the project they've been contributing to for the last month since it started, or doing some important paperwork for her workplace.

He never really understood his mother's distaste towards the octarians, especially towards someone as timid and likable as Marina. That octoling had wanted to fix relations with the inklings for a while now, and she had managed to create quite the mass of fans since she and Pearl created Off the Hook together, hosting their own Splatfests since the Squid Sisters had moved on to their own careers.

"Seems like they aren't keen about the new law, huh?" Lazarus commented, noticing pieces of discarded garbage and papers flew across the street due to the wind.

"Yeah, I mean, why can't we give them another chance?" Lily sounded disappointed, covering her hands within her pockets as they reached the front door of the apartment complex.  
"They already had one, remember?" He turned, looking at the short-tentacled inkling between him and Chloe. "The Great Zapfish was stolen two years ago, and they did it again this year. Can't blame those guys for banning octarians for a little while." He finished, Lily remaining silent in response before letting out a sad hum, almost as though she felt sorry for the octarians, especially for Marina and Pearl.

"I know..." She looked away from Lazarus, her head looking downward as the inkling boy patted her on the shoulder, understanding her sympathy for them.  
"Don't worry, Lil. Mom's taking good care of them, and that's what matters, right?" He forced a smile, even though what Lily said bothered him a bit. His reassuring attitude barely seemed to have an effect on her as she had the same expression on her before nodding at him.

"Alright, come on, you two. We're gonna get splatted if we stay out here too long." He said before the trio went inside the building, walking up the stairs towards their apartments, and heading up the third floor. Once they arrived to their apartments, which were rather close together, the three bid each other a good night before Lily entered her and Chloe's apartment, leaving only the inkling boy and girl together, standing in the hallway.

"Hey, Laz?" Chloe asked as they went for the door to his apartment, the boy turning to look at her, just as he was about to turn the knob.

"Yeah, Chloe?" He responded, raising an eyebrow of his as he opened the door.

"Thanks for helping me and Lily with the salmon run today." She smiled at him, Lazarus doing the same to her in response.  
"Don't mention it, Chloe. Thanks for helping me and Thad, too." He replied warmly, the two looking at each other for quite a while before Lazarus lets out a yawn, stretching his arms out. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow at Grizzco, then?" He moved his hand out towards her, gesturing her to shake it.  
"Yeah, of course!" She grabbed it, giving it a shake before they let go of each other.  
"Good night, Laz! I'll see you tomorrow!" She happily replied before he uttered a good night to her in return, proceeding to close, and lock the apartment door from within, immediately diving onto his bed face-first after taking his boots and jacket off, stretching his arms and legs out, as well as letting out a grunt from all the work with collecting the golden eggs today for Mr. Grizz with his friends and brother before pulling the sheets over him.

He began imagining him and Chloe doing various activities together, all without his brother interfering whatever they were doing as he smiled to himself, an exhale escaping his mouth as he laid his head to the side of his pillow.

However, the thoughts of him and his friend were soon replaced with the new law that Lily talked about.  
He just couldn't get that law out of his head, and he has been worried sick about his mom's condition since she started being distant from him and Thad, not knowing if she's been overworking herself too much.  
Lazarus knew, that a special idol like Marina wasn't going to change the government's, especially his mother's view on the octarians, no matter how famous she was. Again, who could blame her, or them? The octarians had stolen the Great Zapfish twice, and they, along with her had tried giving them a chance to live in Inkopolis with the octarians being a bit resentful of the inklings for past transgressions during their time spent in the capital, especially thanks to the Great Turf War.

It was a relationship between two races that couldn't be fixed, no matter how hard both sides tried to forget their culture's past, which Lazarus thought was a shame. A real missed opportunity to befriend an octoling that he personally would of found to be an interesting thing.

Right as he was about to doze off to sleep, he heard his phone vibrating in his pocket, wondering who could be messaging him at this hour. He sighed, thinking that it was his brother playing a prank on him or Chloe want to text him before going to sleep. The inkling boy let out a tired exhale as he checked his phone.

His eyes woke up a bit at what he saw.

What he thought would just be a usual message from his brother teasing him, was instead a message that had been sent to him from his mother, which he thought had sent him a loving message telling him a good night along with a few heart emoticons, telling him how much she missed him, and when she would come back.

Instead, the message said something that he found a bit out of the ordinary, unlike how his mom usually sent him messages.

" _Lazarus, I need your help at Octo Canyon tomorrow with Thaddeus. This is important._ " The message said, striking him as odd as he texted back to her.  
" _Help? With what?_ " He replied, followed by his mother's response a minute or two later.  
" _I need help with looking around the place, that's all. Just heard from one of the elite octolings, that a worker of theirs have ran away from Cephalon HQ, and I need you, and your brother to find that octarian tomorrow, and return them back._ " He read through the message, understanding what his mother was asking him to do. He felt like he would be throwing his chance away to spend some time together with Chloe and Lily, but he barely got any time to spend with his only parent. This would make a really good bonding experience with her, and he replied back to her soon enough.

" _Sounds interesting_ _. When should I come?_ " He sent the question, his mother replying much than expected, obviously happy with his choice.  
" _Around 10 o' clock at the manhole near Ammo Knights. I'm hoping to see you there, my little Lazzy. Love you!_ " He smiled at the heart emoticon, sending his last message to her before setting his alarm clock to go off at 8.  
" _Love you too, mom. Good night._ " He put a smiling emoticon before sitting up, pulling off his pants and socks, wearing his set of boxers and his plain black t-shirt before heading to the bathroom, brushing his teeth thoroughly before returning to his bed, eventually falling asleep around 15 minutes later after drinking some non-harmful water for himself.

Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day, for sure.


	4. Preparations

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter IV: Preparations**_

The sound of a phone could be heard going off, the eyes of a certain inkling opening upon hearing, and feeling their phone vibrating in their jacket before they took it out, their eyes feeling tired as they turned the alarm off.  
Agent 4 soon realized, that she was lying on the floor instead of sleeping on her chair, confused for a moment until she checked the time on her clock. It was 6AM, the time she set to wake herself up as she rubbed her eyes, looking up at where Ariel was sleeping.  
She was still sleeping where she should be, quiet inhales and exhales coming in and out of her nostrils as a relieved expression appeared on the inkling girl, emitting a sigh before she got up, trying not to wake up the octoling or the pair of idols as she went over to the nearby fridge to get her morning meal.

Grabbing herself some fish sticks along with putting some halibut meat on her slice of bread, she tip-toed over to the table she, the Squid Sisters and Ariel sat at last night, pulling up the blinds slightly as she shielded her eyes once the morning light hit them, a weary, silent yawn escaping her as she sat down, staring out the window towards the snow globe DJ Octavio was in.  
He seemed to be fast asleep, judging by how he wasn't holding onto his wasabi sticks like he usually was, as a result, the sticks themselves have floated up to the top of the globe.

Along with that, the inkling noticed that it was still raining, though, not to the same degree as last night with only small droplets compared to the harsh rain and gusty winds. Seeing the sun outside made her excited before she got in her boots, grabbing her Splat Brella and her fish sticks before leaving the cabin to enjoy the morning air and view outside, opening the door as quietly as possible as she stepped out.

Before she went to the other side of Tentakeel Outpost, she went over to the octarian leader, staring at Octavio for a while before lightly tapping the glass to wake him up, only gaining a response in the form of his arms, or in this case, tentacles twitching as she felt like doing it again, just to tease him for the fun of it.  
She decided to leave him alone instead, preferring not to wake him up in a rude manner before walking towards where the kettles were, chewing on one of the sticks she held.

Upon reaching the other end, avoiding the mud puddles around her, the agent saw the beautiful view of Inkopolis City with light grey clouds hovering in the landscape surrounding it along with a rainbow between Octo Canyon and Inkopolis. The inkling admired the view in front of her as she sat down on the hard surface below, proceeding to hum a song to herself that sounded like Callie's solo; Bomb Rush Blush mixed with Tide Goes Out.  
A solid fifteen minutes went by with her staring out at the beauty before her, continuously humming different songs made by the Squid Sisters, and eating her snack before hearing some footsteps behind her.

"Agent 4?" She heard the voice of one of the squid sisters behind her, noticing Callie walking towards her wearing a black collar jacket with a safety vest, a pair of headsets and dark shoes with shades of lime, along with holding an umbrella of her own. She looked as though she had just recently woken up, thanks to the drowsy look on her, as well as her tentacles looking longer than usual.  
"What are you doing up so early? You forgot to close the door, too!" Callie asked with a curious smile, lowering one of her eyebrows as the inkling girl looked at her, not knowing what to say before letting letting out a timid "W-Woomy...?" in response, taking out her phone while tapping the time displayed.  
"Oh! Time? You wanted to go for a walk?" She guessed, Agent 4 disapprovingly shaking her head at her Callie. "You want to wake up early?" She guessed once more, this time, Agent 4 nodded at her answer, a sound of approval emitting from her.

"What for?" Agent 4 did not know how to respond to this with either sign or body language, only managing to shrug her shoulders as a response before looking back at the city in the distance.

She forgot something in the cabin being her only form of communication.

Callie proceeded to stand against a wall underneath a kettle surrounded by a series of grated walls, a relaxed exhale escaping her, properly tying her tentacles together before crossing her arms, staring out into the view with Agent 4.  
"Beautiful, isn't it?" The pop star yawned, Agent 4 nodding, and letting out a quiet gurgling sound that Callie found adorable, interpreting it as the inkling agreeing with her.

"I agree, too!" She exclaimed happily, smiling to herself.  
For a while, they remained quiet, a peaceful atmosphere filling the air between them with the sound of birds singing as they looked at the view for a while before Callie broke the silence abruptly.  
"Are you ready for today, 4?" Her tone changed to that of a more serious one as Agent 4 looked at her, confused for a few seconds before remembering what Callie told Ariel last night about the leader of the project coming today, a sad hum being her only answer, looking at the ground below her.

"Hey, don't worry about Ariel!" Callie placed a shoulder on the inkling, the girl looking up at her with a concerned expression. "I know the perfect spot for her to hide in, remember?" She reassured the agent, pulling her hand back as Agent 4 got up to her feet soon after, nodding at the pop star.  
"C'mon, let's go back! We shouldn't be out here, especially when it's raining!" Callie hurried back to the cabin as Agent 4 took one more look behind her, staring at the rainbow before hearing the squid sister calling out her name again as she followed her.

* * *

 _ **Two Hours Later...**_

Ariel felt her back being poked at, to which she answered with groan after being woken up like this, still feeling someone poking her before rolling to her side, facing away from the couch.  
"Ugh, what do you-" She paused upon seeing Agent 4 in front of her, her half-smile turning into a frown, as though she felt upset for waking Ariel up like this before emanating a whine from herself. The octoling's annoyed expression disappeared as she instead yawned at her, laying her head on the pillow again.

"Oh, morning, 'Agent 4'..." She muttered, the inkling girl telling her through hand signals and body language that she was sorry for waking her up as Ariel stretched her limbs out, looking at her. "Calm down, I'm not mad..." She muttered, looking at her before hearing Callie and Marie near the table discussing with each other, the latter of the two looking at Ariel upon seeing her awake with a mildly surprised, but tired expression on her face, saying something to her cousin as Callie saw her soon enough as well.

"Good morning, Ariel!" She exclaimed in a cheerful tone upon seeing Ariel fully awake, her cousin looking at her with her hands folded as they watched Ariel letting out a yawn.

"Hey, you two..." She rubbed her eyes, removing the crust sticking on them as Marie looked away from her, eating a piece of bread with fried fish along with squid rings next to her meal as Ariel went over to get herself something to eat, feeling hungry for something herself.

As she looked through the fridge, Ariel could hear Marie mutter something out along with her name, turning to see Callie having a confused expression on her along with Marie staring down at the table, as though she looked regretful about something before taking a slow bite from her breakfast.

"I'm sorry?" Ariel asked, walking towards her, holding a can of tuna.

"I just wanted to say good morning, Ariel..." She quietly replied after an exhale, obviously shaken about something before resuming with eating her breakfast, not looking at her cousin, or anyone, for that matter.

"Um," Ariel simply stared, feeling awkward around Marie's presence. "good morning to you too...?" Ariel mumbled, still fearing the squid sister due to last night as she sat next to Callie, just as Agent 4 walked over to her mentor, grabbing one of the squid rings from Marie's table before looking at her, wondering what's up with her.

Quietness hung in the air around everyone as they ate their meals, not a single word was traded between any of the girls.  
Compared to last night, Marie was acting much more tame towards Ariel, which struck her as odd before the squid sister let out a sigh, looking depressed.

"Sooooo..." Marie continued staring down at her plate, moving one of her fingers over her temple. "...I just wanted to say, that I'm sorry for yesterday." She said, taking a sip from her tea cup, expressionless as the octoling looked at her, unsure of what to say. The idol did give her a bad impression of her when she first came here with Agent 4, as well as how she pushed her away when she planned on kicking her out during a thunderstorm of all times, which could of splatted her.

"Really...?" Ariel uttered, remaining still, not responding to Marie as the squid sister took another sip while Callie watched her and Agent 4 before looking at the time on her phone. It was 8:09, roughly 2 hours before the project's leader would be coming here.

The idol said something inaudible, about to take another sip from her tea, only for her to put it back down after a moment of silence between everyone.

"Forget it." The white-tentacled idol said, gloomy in her voice before eyeing her cousin and Ariel. "Anyways, I wanted to ask, if you know what's gonna happen today." She waited for an answer, her eyes closed, looking as though she was about to fall asleep.

"Yeah, I heard about a leader or something coming?" Callie asked, taking a quick drink from her cup of drinkable liquid.

"Yup." Marie cut her off, raising her eyebrows at her cousin's answer as she began slurping from her tea cup, looking at Ariel with a groggy look. "Their head of security is coming today, and we're gonna need to hide you from them until they're done with their search here." She answered while her eyes remained on Ariel, wiping some of the tea from her lips with a napkin before a yawn came out of her.

"Aren't you working for them, though?" Ariel asked, sounding concerned about Marie's idea as she was about to answer her question, only for the idol's phone to start vibrating, the inkling pulling it out of her kimono as her tired expression went away, changing into something that screamed with seeing something she didn't expect.

"Marie?" Ariel spoke, confused.  
"It's her." She muttered before looking back up at her cousin and the octoling. "Be quiet, okay?" Marie ordered before tapping the green icon on her phone, followed by her touching the speaker button as she held it next to her ear.  
"Hello?" Marie answered, dread looming over Ariel as she anticipated for whatever the voice of their leader would sound like.

" _Hello? Is this Callie, or Marie?_ " A woman's voice could be heard coming from the other end, Marie's tense attitude soon turned into that of unamusement, placing a palm on her face as she let out a sigh.

"It's totally Callie, and not me, Hagar..." She sarcastically replied, her voice having a hint of irritation in it as she rolled her eyes, noticing Ariel getting up, and heading to the sofa she slept on.

" _Oh! I just asked, since you two sound so similar..._ " The woman, known as Hagar on the end chuckled, Marie rolling her eyes at the head's response, as though she just wanted to get to the point of it all. " _Good m_ _orning to you too!_ _You know why I called you, correct?_ "

"Yeah. Look, I'm not in the mood for any jokes today, considering you have me under your contacts, and I just wanna get some sleep. Do you wanna remind me, that you're coming in 2 hours?" Ariel watched, her eyes focused on Marie as the squid sister subtlety stared at her, blinking for a moment before looking at her cousin again.

" _Sorry, Marie... anyways,_ _I just wanted to know, if you've seen an octoling on the cameras last_ night." Ariel's eyes widened a bit, hugging a pillow she had found as she noticed Marie looking at her, curious on her face.  
"An octoling?" Marie asked, watching the octoling burying her face on the pillow, obviously afraid of what was going to happen while Callie sternly glared at her.  
" _Yes,_ _I_ _heard from one of the supervisors at Cephalon HQ that they ran away during work last night, which would result in a punishment for any, and all octarians that break any of our policies._ " Marie remained quiet as she heard Ariel let out muffled whimpers, begging for Marie to not tell the leader where she was as Callie went over to her to try and calm her down.

Seeing this, made Marie feel even worse about herself for what she did last night, especially if she was going to help this woman send an octoling to a place where they didn't feel comfortable being at in the slightest. Her thoughts were soon interrupted, however.  
" _Hello? Marie, are you there? Who's that crying in the background?_ " The leader asked on the other end, the idol opening her mouth, ready to blurt out an answer as she looked at Ariel and Callie, a look of fear on the former as she anticipated what she was going to say.

"No, I haven't..." Ariel's mild bawling stopped, both her and Callie not expecting the answer Marie was going for. "And that's just Callie trying to move on from when I hid those stupid sunglasses from her." She smirked at her, Callie perking up a bit at her answer.  
"No, I'm not!" Callie responded in an irked tone, causing Marie to form a toothy grin at her cousin's expense.

" _A_ _re you sure? Did you check all the cameras?_ " Marie's expression soon returned back to her tired self upon Hagar asking the question.

"Yes, I did! All of last night, too!" She said, her voice starting to get slightly angry as she furrowed her eyebrows.  
"Thanks for giving me all the sleep deprivation I needed today, Hagar! Just come over here at 10, and get it done with! I wanna get some rest..." Her head fell on the table, resting on it as she looked at Ariel, her body's tensity softening a bit after her small outburst with a yawn, the woman on the phone remaining silent at the squid sister's reaction before responding to her.

 _"Alright, calm down, I'll do as you say! I'm coming with a search squad in two hours, just... please, get some rest before we start, okay?_ " Hagar asked on the phone, mildly concerned for her well-being as Marie obliged to her offer with a quiet, barely audible: "Okay..."  
" _Good, I'll meet you and Callie there, then._ " Marie hummed in response before bidding a farewell to the head of security, hanging up on her as she looked back at the others with Ariel and the others looking at her, worried about her.

"Well, that's that..." She got up from her seat, rubbing her eyes, and looking to be having another headache as she headed towards the bedroom, a hand on the side of her head.

"Wait, where are you going?" Ariel watched as the idol took off her kimono, revealing her squid sister outfit underneath it before she began untying her tentacles.

"Just gonna take a shower, and get some rest before they come." She answered, just as she slid the door shut after saying that. Her silhouette behind it could be seen undressing, and tossing away her clothes before the sound of a shower faucet could be heard going off.  
Ariel stared out the window, wondering what was going to happen now until she then turned to look at Callie next to her, who was eating a part of her breakfast, looking like she was enjoying it.

"Callie...?" Ariel asked, grabbing the attention of her.

"Hm?" The squid sister batted an eyebrow at her, wondering what she wanted to say.

"Nothing..." She answered, just barely enough for Callie to hear the tone in her voice. It was that of defeat, and she knew, that Ariel was afraid of being caught by Hagar and her search squad, should they manage to get their hands on her.

"Ariel, they won't find you, okay?" Callie spoke softly, the octoling continuing to look at the table below her, as if she didn't hear the squid sister. "I promise you..." The only response Ariel gave her in response to this, was a long sigh, followed by a single, subtle nod.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, at Inkopolis...**_

Lazarus had just woken up from his sleep, thanks to the alarm he set to go off last night as he began his usual morning routine, getting out of bed, making himself some breakfast, brushing his teeth, removing the crust from his eyes and finding the right clothes to wear for this special day today.

While he was putting his pants on, he could hear the sound of his phone going off again, walking towards it after putting his clothes on properly, thinking that he had accidentally turned on snooze mode before seeing his mom's name on it. And she was calling him.

"Hello?" He answered after picking the phone up, trying to sound as happy as possible despite his tired state.

" _Hey Lazarus, mom here!_ " The warm sound of his mother's voice instantly made him smile to himself upon hearing it, having missed it for quite some time now.  
"Morning, mom..." He answered as his toaster popped out the bread he put in, walking towards the fridge after pulling the piece of toast out. "What's cookin'?" He opened it, looking through the contents something to drink until he spotted a nearby juice box in front of him.

" _J_ _ust cooking myself a nice breakfast_!" Lazarus hummed at her response, muttering out: "Hm, cool..." afterward as his mom continued.  
" _Anyways,_ _I just wanted to let you know, that-_ "  
"We're going to Octo Canyon in 2 hours?" He interrupted, placing the carton on the table before grabbing himself a cup of glass in one of the shelves.

" _Yeah! Sorry, I should of known, that you knew this already._ " She said apologetically on the other end, the inkling boy pouring some of the contents into the cup.

"Hm, no problem, really." He replied, taking a swig from his mug.

" _Oh,_ _I forgot to ask! How was it at Grizzco yesterday?_ " His mother asked as he put the cup back on the table, letting the taste of various fruits run through his tongue.

"It was good! Had some fun collecting golden eggs with Thad and the girls there, as well as getting some money for us." He smiled as he began thinking of the effort his brother and friends pulled off with him last night, taking a bite from the morning toast he made himself as he looked at the items he got from the gachaphons last night.

" _That's good to hear, Laz! By the way, you won't believe this, but I had a talk with Marie of the Squid Sisters this morning, and-_ "

"Wait, Marie!?" He put the piece of toast back on the plate, his expression having taken a 180 as he realized he would be meeting one of the idols he had dreamed of encountering. "THE SQUID SISTER!?" Like a tidal wave, his childhood memories came flooding into his mind as he comprehended the reality he would be in for his stay at Octo Canyon.  
As a child, he had listened to the pair of idols back before he had developed his humanoid form completely, as well as when his brother was around his current age. He still remembered fondly of the last splatfest they hosted together, even when he wasn't allowed in turf wars. Though, he always spectated his brother's matches, wanting him to win so badly for Marie's team, and experiencing how he would be like during turf wars, just like his brother: A force to be reckoned with, and well-known around Inkopolis along with a team of S ranks.

" _Yes, that Marie! I felt like bringing you and Thaddeus with me, so that you two could meet them!_ " He snapped back to reality upon hearing his mother answer him as he took deep breaths to calm himself down, trying to contain the excitement as he realized, he hadn't even finished his breakfast yet.

"Um, yeah! I'm sorry for yelling like that, I'm just, you know, really excited to see them, and I REALLY wanna get an autograph from the squid sisters!" He said, chomping down on his food, a delighted look forming on his face as he felt his body shiver with a twinge of excitement.

" _I'm sure they will, sweetie! I'll see you at the manhole near Ammo Knights with Thaddeus and our search squad at 10!_ " He nodded, acknowledging where she and his brother will be as he swallowed his bite.

"Alright, got it! Love you, mom!" He smiled, emitting kissing sounds before hanging up on her, proceeding to finish up the rest of his meal and drink before going through his phone's contacts again before coming to one labelled: "Golden Egg Lover". He tapped the contact, and called them.

It took a few rings, before a voice eventually managed to pick up on the other end.

" _ **Grrmm...**_ " A growl was heard in the background, as though the person on the other end had just woken up from their sleep. " _ **...hello? This is Mr. Grizz from Grizzco Industries speakin'...**_ " The all-too familiar raspy, yet gruff voice of his boss answered, slightly annoyed on the other end.

"Hey Grizz, Lazarus here." He announced his presence to him.

" ** _O_** _ **h!**_ " His boss' voice perked up upon hearing him. " _ **M**_ _ **ornin' to ya, kid! I, eh... apologize for talking to you like that** **earlier...**_ " The inkling heard his boss let out a yawn, before hearing him doing something, a grunt being heard in the background, as though his boss was getting up from his bed.  
" ** _Is there somethin' ya need? You better have a good reason for callin' me at this hour, kid. 'specially when I was having a nice dream and all that..._** "

"Yeah, sorry for waking you up like this, boss..." The inkling answered, already knowing that he would slightly disappoint Mr. Grizz with the news. "I just wanted to say, that me and my bro might not be able to come to work today." He looked down at his empty plate, already feeling a resentful for saying that, considering how passionate he was about his job.

" _ **I**_ _ **s that so?**_ " He was wrong about his prediction. He heard his boss sounding confused, but not disappointed, Lazarus only managing to blurt out a quiet, timid "Yeah..." before he heard Mr. Grizz let out his signature verbal tic.  
" _ **Hrmph, that's a real shame. Mind tellin' me why?**_ " He asked, now sounding interested rather than the opposite.

"Well," Lazarus paused for a second or so to get up from his seat, and walk over to the window. "it's just that, my mom who works for the government asked me last night to come to Octo Canyon this morning to search for a missing octoling. Don't really know how long I'll be there for, but I'm hoping, that I'll still come to work if we find them sooner than expected." He waited for a response from his superior. It felt a bit too quiet on the other end, until he heard his boss whisper out a few numbers. "Mr. Grizz?" He uttered, hearing as though he grabbed his boss' attention from something.

" ** _Sorry, I was just countin' on all the_ _eggs here._** " Lazarus groaned. Of course, Mr. Grizz always had a fascination with the golden eggs he and Grizzco's employees collected for him. " ** _Anyway,_ _I_** _ **understand your problem, kid.**_ _ **There's no need for any apologies, really.**_ " Lazarus was initially puzzled at answer he was given, wondering what Mr. Grizz meant by that as he stared down to where the square was.

"But, sir, I..." He trailed off, not knowing what to say.  
" _ **Listen**_ _ **, Lazarus**_ _ **.**_ _ **If this is botherin' you so much, then I could just**_ _ **let ya take a day off to help your family for today, if that makes you any happy.**_ " The inkling's expression beamed upon hearing Mr. Grizz's proposition to him.

"Really!?" He answered, a wide grin spreading on his face.  
" _ **Yeah**_ _ **,**_ _ **I think you should help 'em out while you can. I could always get a pair of freelancers for ya and Thad if you two don't show up later.**_ " Mr. Grizz encouraged, Lazarus just now noticing his brother walking towards Ammo Knights where the manhole was, wondering what he's doing there so early.

"That'd be great, sir! Thank you!" Lazarus watched as most of the inklings were already up and going at it in turf wars, ranked and league battles on Manta Maria and Port Mackerel nearby, some of the battles being rolls for either teams while others were fairly close, or even matches. Other inklings, though, were just hanging around Inkopolis Square, eating a nice meal or chatting with each other.

" _ **There's n**_ _ **o need to thank me, kid. I have plenty of golden eggs to examine until your next shift, thanks to you, and the help of your co-workers.**_ " Lazarus nodded before seeing his brother jump into the manhole in his squid form, most likely wanting to see Octo Canyon for himself.  
"Cool, thanks! Gotta go, though!" He said as he sprinted towards the front door to put on his jacket and boots, his subconscious soon reminding him of Chloe and Lily, just as he was about to say his farewell to Mr. Grizz.

"Wait, before I go..." He heard his boss let out a curious hum as he was about to utter out a sentence, sounding as though he was busy doing something in the background. "...if I don't show up today, could you tell Chloe and Lily that I said hi? Please?" He felt a bit stupid saying that to his boss, feeling slightly embarrassed now as he heard Mr. Grizz let out a short guffaw on the other end, as if he knew Lazarus felt something special towards them both.

" _ **You have my word, employee**_ _ **. I'll see ya at work if you decide to come, and make sure, that you have a safe trip today, you got it?**_ "  
"Got it!" Lazarus answered before they said their farewells, the inkling ending the call as he stood in front of his apartment's entrance, wearing his jacket and boots before placing a hand of his on the door's handle, opening it soon after.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I apologize for not uploading this earlier than expected. College has been a bit stressful for me lately, even when I'm already about 2 and a half weeks into it. Weird, huh?  
Only thing that's keeping me from dropping out are my friends there, as well as my dedication to wanting that college degree so I can study further on marine biology, even if that will take about 4 years to earn, which is no easy task, obviously.**

 **Another contributor to this stress, is the community I've been running dedicated to Splatoon writers on Discord. Don't get me wrong, the people there are awesome, it's just that I have to keep watch over it almost all the time, in case something bad happens, like arguments, fights or any of that stuff. Thankfully, with the help of some moderators and people that care about it, it's settled down a bit. If you're interested in joining the community, hit me up with a PM. We're mostly active during weekends, but not as much on weekdays.**

 **Another thing before any of you start asking for Chapter V, yes, it will be worked on soon. I just need to start working on an essay I need to deliver on the 15th of September, and when I finish that, I'll be sure to start writing on the fifth chapter worth your while. Don't really want writer's block and all that, you know?**

 **Thank you for understanding why Chapter V will take a while to be put out. This is EpsilonProductions, signing out.**


	5. A Fan Meets Their Idol

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter V: A Fan Meets Their Idol**_

After running through the stairwell and pushing his way through the apartment complex's front door, Lazarus ran through the street towards Inkopolis Square where Ammo Knights was, grabbing the curious looks of a few inklings around him, most likely wondering why an inkling would be this excited to start their day before he stood over the manhole that his brother went in.  
Analyzing what was inside proved to show nothing, but darkness, with the exception of a glimmer of blue ink below. Convenient, considering his ink color was the same as he turned into his squid form, and jumped inside.

Upon adjusting his eyes to the darkness that enveloped him, he realized he was in a crossroad of tunnels, a trail of blue ink having been laid before him as he heard the sound of rushing water from his side as Lazarus followed the trail, swimming for what felt like a few minutes before seeing a light after turning around a corner, swimming as fast as he could before managing to pop out of another manhole.

Instead of being in another part of Inkopolis, however, he instead found himself somewhere more distant, thanks to how there weren't any of the usual skyscrapers and tall buildings around him, as well as a lack of inklings. This must of been the place he assumed where he, his brother and mother were supposed to go to today: Octo Canyon, the large, rocky formations of octopus tentacles in front of him confirming his assumptions, and how there didn't seem to be any hint of civilization whatsoever around him.

" _Wow... so_ _this Octo Canyon?_ " Lazarus asked himself, not knowing how to take in this beautiful, panoramic sight he saw.  
Compared to the city landscape he was so used to, he was amazed with how large, and beautiful the location was, impressed by the formation of the environment, combined with the sounds of the birds' melodies in the trees on the pieces of floating rubble making it all the more atmospheric for him to take in before he laid his eyes on something out of the ordinary: A small cabin with a large instrument attached on the top with some type of green wallpaper laying on one of the cabin's walls, an icon plastered on it as if it were a mattress of some kind along with some clothes, a few birds in small cages, and other miscellaneous items he saw underneath the instrument on the roof.

" _Wait,_ _someone actually lives here?_ " The inkling wondered to himself, a hand under his chin. To the opposite side of the cabin, was what looked to be an orange-red colored dumpster with the Ammo Knights logo on it along with a firing range further to the left with three balloons depicting several types of octarians, which made him raise an eyebrow. Continuing to look to his left behind him, he saw a TV and a slight, wet-looking couch under a tree, before finally laying his eyes upon something interesting as he stopped turning.

He saw what looked to be a snowglobe containing a red cephalopod of some kind, presumably an octarian holding wasabi sticks, wearing a golden-trimmed black helmet with green summer shades on, sporting green eyes, as well as a green mark on one of its tentacles with golden bracelets on its arms. And it was looking at him with a slight frown.

The inkling was wondering as to what it was doing in there, walking over to the creature to take a closer look before hearing a sudden, loud whistle behind him.

"HEY, LAZ!" He heard his brother call out from behind, turning to where he was as he saw Thad standing over on one of the graffiti'd steel platforms, arms folded while resting his back on a steel pipe, proudly smiling at him with a backpack sitting next to him. His clothing was different this time around, looking as though he was ready for an adventure with his set of hiking boots, mountain jacket and safari hat.

"Thad!" Lazarus ran over to him, the two brothers surprised to see each other in Octo Canyon as they grabbed each other's hands, their arm wrestling being their usual way of greeting each other before letting go of each other. "Bro, what are you doing here!? You're an hour early!" Lazarus asked, wanting to know why his brother was here as Thad sounded amused by his question, stretching his arms into the air.

"I could ask you the same question, lil' bro." He grinned, letting out a yawn as he finished stretching himself out. "To put it simply, I came here to see how the place looks, and because-"  
"Our mom told us to be here at 10?" Lazarus said simultaneously with him, already knowing why he, and his brother should be here as Thad's shoulders lowered in response, looking as though he took a bit of offense to him cutting him off.

"Yeah... um, bro?" He said awkwardly, scratching his own head as Lazarus looked at him, letting out a hum as he wondered what's up. "Could you knock it off with the whole "cutting everyone off mid-sentence" thing? It's getting kinda annoying, especially for me, to be honest..." He took out a bottle from his backpack, the flask containing drinkable, icy cold water in it as he popped it open, throwing the cap away as he consumed a bit of the liquid within.  
"Oh, s-sorry, I'm just excited, you know?" Lazarus looked away, his face slowly turning into a frown as he thought about his brother's words, both inklings staying quiet as they stared at the stone formations around them, intrigued by the environment and architecture.

"So..." Lazarus looked at his brother, trying to start a conversation. "...are you excited?"

"'course I am!" His brother answered, sounding cocksure in his tone. "What kinda question is that?" Thad asked as Lazarus opened his mouth to speak, only to get a taste of his own medicine soon after.  
"Can't wait to find that octoling before you do, by the way. 'specially how she'll react when I put these shades on her." He grinned as he took out a pair of sunglasses with a red light inside, Lazarus looking at the strange accessory his brother held at his fingertips before a grin spread on him as well.

"Oh, really!?" Lazarus asked, folding his arms. "I'll find that octoling before YOU do!" Lazarus pretended to sound confident in his tone as well, always having competed with his brother since he became 14 as Thad let out a laugh in response, gripping the bottle he held in his hand.

"Yeah, sure you will..." The older of the two replied sarcastically, taking another drink before they heard a nearby door opening from the cabin, wondering who it could be as they saw a figure eventually step out.  
It was a yellow-tentacled inkling girl, looking to be around Lazarus' age, sporting crimson-red eyes and holding a set of dualies as Lazarus could hear brother letting out a seductive chuckle as he examined her.

"Da-hamn, look at her, Laz!" His brother whispered to his ear, Lazarus continuing to eye the girl he was pointing at.

"What about her?" Lazarus replied, wondering what was so special about her that his brother saw.

"Look how attractive she is, man! You should- no wait, I'm gonna see if I can score 'er!" He saw Thaddeus grinning, stretching his fingers and arms out.  
"Yeah, good luck with that." Lazarus scoffed, rolling his eyes as his brother prodded him as she was approaching them both.  
"Bro, it's totally gonna work this time! Just watch, 'kay?" He smirked as the girl stood before them, wondering what the two were talking about.

"'ey, what's up, girl?" Thad spoke in a cocky manner upon the girl coming close enough, already finding her beautiful as the inkling girl watched him, weirded out by his sudden means of introducing himself.  
She remained quiet, looking up at him strangely while Lazarus spectated, waiting for either her or him to say something as Thad's boastful smile disappeared after an awkward moment. "Uhhh... that's your cue to talk, girl? Or say anything at all? You're staring at someone who's an S+ rank, you know!" He exclaimed, still arrogant in his tone as the inkling girl looked at Lazarus, as if she didn't know what to say, and was slightly creeped out before Thad's face perked up, as though he just got an idea.

"OH, I SEE! You're speechless at how cool I am!" He cackled softly, putting a hand on his forehead. "Oh man, sorry for making you THAT impressed! Just like that "Agent 3" girl I hit on two years ago!" Lazarus already found his brother's presence to be cringe-worthy at this point, walking away from him, not wanting to listen to any more of his egotistical rubbish as he went towards the snow globe with the octopus contained inside, still finding it peculiar as to what it was doing in there of all places.

The octarian was silent as Lazarus stared at it, the creature looking uncomfortable with him being so close to it before Lazarus sat down in front of the globe, letting out a sigh as he watched the interaction between Thaddeus and the girl play out. It didn't look to be going too well for his brother.

"...is that kid nuts, or somethin'?" The octarian suddenly spoke through the globe after watching Lazarus' brother trying to impress the inkling girl, his voice sounding deep, masculine, and old as Lazarus' ears raised up, quickly turning around to face him with shock.

"I'm sorry?" Lazarus said, surprised to see that the creature behind him could talk.  
"I asked, if he's bein' crazy stupid, or somethin'! He's usin' all the wrong ways to get that girl!" The creature spoke in a mildly annoyed voice, likely from how Lazarus didn't hear him the first time.

"Yeah, that's my bro, alright..." He answered before looking back at Thaddeus, who was bragging about his rank, level and how Lazarus idolized him so much, making him a bit jealous as he saw the inkling girl clearly looking uninterested with his accomplishments before he went for the sudden move of putting his arm on her shoulder, a grin plastered on his face as the girl let out a loud, garbled scream in response, grabbing even him by surprise before she pushed him away, his brother falling off the steel platforms with a yelp, letting out a short-lasting scream before the sound of him getting splatted as his ghost could be seen floating towards the respawn point nearby, looking humiliated as the girl ran to the cabin out of embarrassment.

This caused both Lazarus and the octarian to go silent before Lazarus started laughing out of shock, just quiet enough not to be heard by Thad, whose ghost entered the manhole as the octarian began laughing to himself out loud, clearly entertained by Thaddeus failing at impressing the girl as the older inkling looked at them upon respawning, his cheeks instantly turning a light-blue color upon noticing the two laughing at him.  
"REALLY, YA LITTLE HIPSTER!?" Lazarus could hear the octarian stopping for a moment to catch his breath. "Ya let someone like yerself be pushed off by a teensy little girl!? GET THE HECK OUT OF HERE!" He continued roaring in laughter as Lazarus saw his brother's face become the same color as his hair, noticing him gritting his teeth in anger, letting out a growl as though he was about to scream at the two to stop.

Instead of yelling at the two, his brother sighed before turning away, inking the ground below him with his charger, turning into his squid form and retreating to the other side of the outpost as Lazarus and the octarian looked at each other, trying to hold back their laughter before eventually calming down.

"GYEHAHAHA, by the Great Zapfish, that right there made my mornin'! Thanks for bringin' that lil' squirt with ya, kid!" The octarian seemed to be smiling as Lazarus got up to his feet, looking at the octopus with a smile of his own. "Boy, that look on 'is face!" He let out a snicker within his prison, Lazarus not wanting to cut him off until he's finished having his moment.

"Heh, yeah..." Lazarus said once the octarian stopped laughing, admittingly finding the look on his brother's face priceless as he let out a snort at the thought. "Well, seems like you kinda needed that, too. You looked a bit annoyed being in there." Lazarus folded his arms, examining the globe containing the octopus as he saw some cracks and bandages on it, as if it were shattered.

"Oh, this thing 'round me?" The octopus asked, Lazarus answering him with a nod. "Don' worry, it really ain't so bad in 'ere. Just a wee lil' bit cramped, that's all..." The octarian responded, his expression now looking relaxed and calm as Lazarus could hear some arguing inside the cabin, turning for a second to look at it, seeing two inklings inside before looking back at the octarian.

"I see..." He rubbed his hair, looking away for a bit before looking at the octarian again. "...Well, how about I introduce myself, then? Name's Lazarus, but people like to call me Laz! What's yours?" He asked, wanting to offer a handshake, but soon forgot about the snowglobe being in his way. Even with his optimistic attitude, though, he felt a little bit weird asking the name of the octarian as it perked up an eye of his.

"My name?" The octarian paused for a second, looking to be slightly offended by Lazarus' question as he grabbed onto his wasabi stalks. "You 'aven't heard of me, YA LITTLE SLIMEBALL!? I AM OCTAVIO!" He abruptly raised his voice, causing Lazarus to take a step back as Octavio stuck a pose with the plants he held onto, as though he was ready to shatter the globe around him. "DJ OCTAVIO, THE GREAT LEADER OF THE OCTARIANS, AND THE ONE THAT'LL REMIX YER FACE!"

He let out a roaring laugh, raising his arms upward, waiting for the inkling to run away in fear before being met with the sound of a guffaw coming from Lazarus instead, the inkling looking to have taken a liking to the octarian leader's hammy voice instead of screaming in terror. "Wait, wait, wha'!? DIS IS THE PART WHERE YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO RUN AWAY! SCRAM!" Octavio shouted, exaggerating his voice to try and sound menacing, only for Lazarus to continue giggling at his way of talking, the octarian growling a bit as he lowered his arms.

"I'm sorry, are you TRYING to be scary, or something?" Lazarus asked, grinning at him as he let out another chuckle.  
Upon realizing he was just making a fool of himself, Octavio let out a sigh, defeated as he let out a mumble that the inkling didn't hear.

"Wait..." Lazarus paused, feeling as though he's heard that name before. "That name... aren't you the one that stole the Great Zapfish!?" Lazarus asked, raising his voice a bit. He had once read a newspaper article during his final phases of developing his humanoid form, the article showcasing an interview with an octarian sealed away in a snowglobe, claiming that he had stolen the power source of Inkopolis for "his people" after the Great Turf War.

"INDEED, 'TWAS I!" Octavio answered in his exaggerated, hammy voice again. Though, at this point, it was now made chuckle-worthy for Lazarus instead of threatening. "COULDA WORKED TOO, HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR THOSE TWO SQUIDS BEHIND YOU! THEY FOILED MAH PLANS, ALL OF 'EM! **GOSH DARN IT TO HECK, YOU TWO! YOU RUINED 'EM ALL!** " He pointed at whatever was behind Lazarus, causing him to turn around, only for him to immediately be overwhelmed with a mix of shock and excitement, fixated on who he saw in front of him.

"Hey, just who do you and that seabagging creep think you are, hitting on Agent 4 like that!?" Marie, the pop star he's idolized so much, was standing right there with the girl from earlier cowering behind her, the idol wearing her squid sister outfit, still hastily putting on a grey-black kimono. She looked as though she had recently been taking a shower, judging from how clean she looked, as well as her tentacles glistening from the sun, and how she wasn't even properly dressed.

"M-Marie...!?" Lazarus stammered, feeling a mixture of excitement and nervousness creeping up to his mind as he stared at the idol. He felt like running over to her, telling her how much of a fan he is, how he watched both her and Callie's world tours, and everything he could list off that made him adore the two so much back when they were popular...

"HEY! Are you just gonna stare at me, or what!?" Marie asked, her voice sounding hostile and questioning as Lazarus snapped back to his senses, the inkling boy just realizing now that he's been looking at her, mouth slightly agape as he blinked, feeling awkward.

"Sorry, I just...!" He exhaled, trying to calm himself down, a hand over his chest as he recalls what happened earlier. "...I, I didn't know what to do, um-!" He replied shakily, laughing nervously as he backed away, Marie flipping open her parasol, covering both her and Agent 4 behind her.

"So you just let that clown try, and seduce Agent 4!? You do realize, that she's 14, and too young to do that stuff, right!?" Marie raised her voice, practically yelling like an angry parent now as Lazarus felt like he's put both his brother, as well as himself to shame.

"It's not my fault Thad's like that, though!" He raised his voice in response, sounding as though he was on the verge of crying, thanks to the inability to handle arguments properly. "Besides, I didn't do anything to her, except laugh a bit when she hit Thaddeus, I swear, I didn't do anything to her!" Lazarus saw the inkling girl popping her head behind Marie and her parasol, looking afraid of him as Marie let out a humph, retracting her parasol back and holding it above her, now properly wearing her kimono outfit.

"Oh, really?" She asked, raising an eyebrow before proceeding to cut Lazarus off, just as he was about to say something. "Don't even think about getting any ideas of hitting on Agent 4 along with that so-called brother of yours again, you hear me!? Now, get out of here before I get the authorities on you and your brother! I have important errands to take care of!" Marie yelled, pointing at the manhole he and Thaddeus came out of.  
Lazarus felt as though his heart shattered after getting that verbal beating from the one he's looked up to so much, feeling as though he was ready to start crying out of shame before hearing Octavio behind him, clearing his throat.

"C'MON, YOU! You're makin' 'im cry with all that yellin' of yours!" Octavio folded his tentacles, grabbing the idol's attention as her eyes stared into his. "This kid 'ere's right! He ain't doin' anything wrong, just 'cause his brother did somethin' stupid!" He commented, his eyes furrowing as Marie walked towards the octarian, ignoring Lazarus as she walked past him.  
"Alright, prove it, then! Tell me why he's so special, go on!" Marie said brashly, doubtful of the octarian's claim as she furrowed her brows as well.

"'right, so this kid 'ere came over to me, lookin' pretty annoyed by that squirt of a brother after he started hittin' on her. That's all the proof ya need to know that he ain't a creep like 'im!" Marie looked as though she was about to say something to counter the octarian's claim, only for Octavio to cut her off as he continued.  
"Speakin' of 'is brother, though, you shoulda seen when he got his face mashed in by that little minion of yours! HE FELL OFF THE PLATFORM LIKE THE BLUBBERIN' BUFFOON HE WAS!" Lazarus couldn't help, but feel like laughing at Octavio's explanation, noticing Agent 4 half-smiling curiously while Marie's expression turned into a puzzled one instead, as if she didn't know how to react to Octavio looking so happy as Lazarus saw Marie's lips curl upwards slightly. "I'm telllin' ya! That boy's face when he respawned! THAT WAS GOLD, RIGHT THERE!" He let out a laugh, sounding as though he genuinely enjoyed seeing his brother getting pushed off, harmlessly getting splatted by a girl younger than him, especially for someone that was an S+ rank.

Marie looked at Lazarus, still curious about what Octavio told her as she took a step towards him.  
"Really?" Marie asked, sounding interested as Octavio showed some form of agreement by letting out an "Mhm!" followed by a soft cackle.

The squid sister didn't say a word, only letting out a long exhale as she looked down on the ground, contemplating about something before looking at Lazarus for a moment, his expression being all the proof she needed as she looked at the octarian again.  
"Color me surprised, Octavio. I... actually believe in you, for once." She managed to blurt out, looking as though she was annoyed with herself as she attempted to form a half-smile on her while walking towards Lazarus.

"So, what's your name, kid?" She asked the inkling boy, feeling a bit ashamed of the argument they had.

"L-Lazarus... I'm sorry for everything, I really am, Marie! Please, forgive me!" He nervously pulled his hand out, looking to his side from the idol as she stared at the hand for a few seconds,turning her eyes towards the inkling, reaching her hand out in response.  
Upon shaking the inkling's hand, Marie noticed the sudden shift in Lazarus' expression, now trying to hold back his excitement as he looked at her hand, muttering out a few sentences of how she was shaking his out loud as Marie let go soon after, a single chuckle escaping her at the sight of this inkling as a subtle smile appeared on her.

" _Does he really like me and Callie that much_ _?_ " Marie thought to herself, feeling bad about herself again for causing a fan of the squid sisters to almost break down into tears, just like what happened last night as she looked over to Agent 4, who was watching the whole thing from underneath the cabin.  
"Look, I'm so, so sorry for demoralizing you like that earlier, Lazarus, especially someone that happens to be a fan of me and my cousin." She tried calming him down, tapping one of her feet on the ground repeatedly. "Agent 4 really isn't the best when it comes to explaining things, maybe I should of given her the notepad earlier..." She moved her parasol down a bit, looking at Agent 4 behind her as the girl whined, sitting in a fetal position as she continued spectating them.

"N-No, it's fine, really..." He muttered shakily, the squid sister looking back at him. "...I should be the one sorry for just letting Thad get a bit too close to her, and not doing anything about it." He looked at the girl his brother scared off, curiosity filling his thoughts as what her name was before remembering what Marie called her. "Actually, what's her name? Agent 4, or something?" Lazarus sniffed before walking over to her, the inkling girl remaining silent as he approached her, anxiously looking away from him as he stopped in his tracks.

"Yeah, that's her nickname, by the way. I don't know her name myself, since she hasn't given me any details on that yet, so, I just gave her that name when she and I first met, similar to my code name: Agent 2. And, well... she's stuck to it ever since." Marie answered while Lazarus listened, interested in Marie's answer as the inkling girl tried her best to smile at him, only to look away again upon their eyes meeting. "She's also the reason the Great Zapfish was returned, and how Callie was found." The pop star smiled as she went over and caressed the girl's hair, causing Agent 4 to move away a bit as Lazarus chuckled, finding her personality adorable.

"Well, then! That's... kinda weird for someone like her, don't you think?" He asked, unsure of what to say to Marie's comment. "A girl that shy being able to save the Great Zapfish along with Callie? Against what I assume being an army of octarians? Without saying a word?" Lazarus questioned her, only to hear Octavio let out an audible, rough sigh despite the glass around him as the inkling boy looked back at him, noticing the usual, angry look on him again. "You okay, Octavio?" He asked, wondering why he was angry like before.

"Listen 'ere, boy. You might not believe all of this, but you would of, if you could of seen what that spicy little inkling there can pull off!" He looked at Agent 4, staring at her as she looked back, curiously tilting her head at the octarian leader as he pointed one of his sticks at her. "First, she packs that rapid-firin' hero shot along with all sorts of other unfair weapons she mops the floor with, then she gave my people, the octobosses and EVEN MYSELF A SPLATTIN' THAT PUT AGENT 3 TO SHAME, EVEN WRECKIN' MAH NEW VERSION OF THE OCTOBOT KING THAT I HAD PREPARED FOR WHEN SHE WOULD ARRIVE, **THEN CONTINUED TO DESTROY IT WITH THAT GOSH DARN RAINMAKER OF 'ERS AFTER THAT _SINGIN' LITTLE HIPPIE_ THERE FREED HER COUSIN FROM THOSE COOL-LOOKIN' SHADES I GAVE 'ER AS A BIRTHDAY PRESENT, AND THEN, I...!**" Octavio coughed, sounding as though he was running out of air from that point while pointing, Lazarus spotting Marie grinning to herself while he was paying full attention to the octarian.

"Damn, that's..." Was the only thing Lazarus could muster to say before he heard Marie snicker at the octarian's rant of the whole thing.

"Okay, calm down, Octavio! Maybe if you stopped hitting yourself with those fists all the time and made some actual improvements to your mech instead of giving it a new coat of ink, and did some planning first, you could of actually won, you dork!" Marie responded teasingly, putting a hand over her lips as Octavio let out a growl, placing one of his arms over his face.

"Don't you be tellin' me what to do, grandma!" The DJ tried raising his voice, sounding hoarse from all the yelling he made as Marie was on the verge of having a laughing fit before everyone could hear the sound of something popping out of the manhole leading to Inkopolis Square, causing the conversation to go quiet as they turned towards the source of the noise.  
What they saw, froze both Marie and Lazarus while Octavio and Agent 4 were simply curious.  
In front of them, was a blue-colored inkling in their squid form, looking to be much larger than a regular inkling's before it turned into its humanoid form.

The inkling looked to be feminine, as well as taller than any of the other inklings in the vicinity, sporting the same hair color as Lazarus' with a ponytail, along with bangs hanging from her sides, coupled with sporting some silver earrings. She was wearing a royal blue, formal-looking, hoodless jacket along with feminine black pants, embedded with metallic buttons with stripes on the sides, as well as black shoes with visible socks of the same color, along with a weapon that looked to be a much bigger version of a charger, as well as a device reminiscent of a killer wail attached on the top of the barrel.

"Hagar?!" Marie spoke up first, sounding confused, as well as surprised while Lazarus' face brightened up, knowing who it was the second she turned around to face the four, a warm smile forming on the woman's lips upon setting her eyes on him as he ran over to her. With a more clearer view from the front, she had a white shirt with a black cephalopod logo on it, her jacket was open, and her eyes looked to be as blue as the ocean itself. She was absolutely beautiful in Marie's eyes, even in her 40s.

"Mom!" Lazarus yelled, overjoyed to see his parent after weeks of not seeing her as more inklings of either genders past his and Thad's age popped out after Hagar stepped off the manhole, the inklings coming out wielding several kinds of weapons with armor on their bodies.  
As he got close enough to his mother, he jumped towards her, turning into his squid form, and landing right into her hands as she joyously grinned at him, holding Lazarus in her arms as if he were a hatchling.

"Lazarus, my little beacon!" He heard his mother letting out a laugh as he began hugging her, wrapping his tentacles around her before feeling himself being held up in the air, happily laughing with his mother as he saw the men and women around them watching, smiling at the reunion between the two before he turned back into his humanoid form, hugging his mother.

"Mom, oh my cod, I missed you so much...!" Lazarus felt something in his eyes, removing whatever ink was welling up there.

"I've missed you too, Lazzy... I'm sorry for leaving you, I..." She trailed off, kissing him on the hair before letting out a sigh as she kneels down to his height. "...I should of spent more time with you, Lazarus. I should of been there to pick you up from work more often with your friends, I..." She fell quiet, a bittersweet smile curling up on her lips as she patted him on the back before Lazarus let go of her soon after, a satisfied exhale coming out of him as he looked up at her.

They soon heard the sound of someone's throat clearing nearby, grabbing their attention as Hagar felt her shoulder being poked at. "I hate to ruin the feelsy, emotional reunion, you two, but..." Marie said, casting some shade on herself again with the parasol. "...Hagar, why are you here so early?"

"Oh! I'm sorry for coming here so unexpectedly, especially like this, Marie!" She apologized profusely while standing up, placing a hand over her son's shoulder. "I felt like, that since you want to do that song with your cousin so much, we could try finding that octoling sooner than we scheduled! Thaddeus already texted me, and told me that he and Lazarus were here, so I just decided to come here a bit early!" Lazarus felt his hair being fondled with care and love by his mother as he saw Marie's eyebrows perking up in response to Hagar's answer, folding her umbrella, and putting it in her kimono.

"Hm, I guess that could actually work out..." Lazarus saw Marie smiling at the idea his mother came up with, looking at the squadron of inklings, seeing them looking around the beautiful location they were in, taken aback by the environment like Lazarus was the first time he set foot here before she looked back at Hagar and Lazarus, his mother caressing him in a protective manner.  
"Anyways, since you and your friends are here earlier than I wanted, why... don't we prepare for that search?" Marie looked at the cabin behind her, Hagar and Lazarus curiously doing the same thing before the pop star cleared her throat, grabbing the two's attention. "Please, don't peek at that window, you two! Callie's getting dressed, and I don't want you embarrassing her!" She said protectively, waving her hand at the two to focus completely on her as Lazarus began blushing a bit.

"R-Right, of course! I'll get right to it!" Lazarus' mother replied, optimistic in her tone as Marie began jogging towards the cabin's entrance.  
Hagar, wasting no time, turned around to look at the group of inklings behind her, telling the ones that were looking around to gather in front of her and Lazarus as they did what they were told.  
Just as she was about to say something regarding about the search that'll be taking place and organizing the teams, a look of realization came on her as she looked down at her son, confused by something as she proceeded to look around.

"Laz?" She muttered, patting his shoulder.  
"Yeah?" He looked up at his mother, wondering what's wrong. He could tell someone among everyone was missing.  
"Where's your brother?" She asked, looking at the area surrounding her and and her son.

"He's just looking around the area nearby! Want me to get him?" He knew, that what he said wasn't what his brother was actually doing, but he didn't want to worry his mother too much about what happened before she and the others got here.

"That'd be great, sweetie! I'll wait for you and Thaddeus, okay?" Lazarus nodded before running to the other side, passing the steel platforms separating the two areas before coming across a small field of kettles, managing to spot his brother sitting near the edge on a grassy surface showcasing a view of their capital city, his brother covering his face with a hand of his own as Lazarus ran towards him, standing on a ledge near a kettle much larger than the others in the area.

"Hey, bro!" He yelled at Thaddeus, his voice echoing through the sector. No response, not even a sound or movement from his brother aside from his breathing.  
"Thad? You alright?" He jumped off, landing on the grassy, dirty ground below as he walked over to him.

A murmur emitted from his brother, his head turning away from Lazarus upon standing next to him. "Bro, come on, not now..." He knelt down, looking at Thaddeus, not wanting to bother to ask the obvious question before his brother let out a groan upon giving him a good nudge or two.  
"What do you want, Laz?" Thad finally asked, sounding irritated as he removed the hand covering his face. He still looked to be mildly embarrassed from earlier, thanks to the tinted blue color on his cheeks and tired look, as well as Lazarus disturbing his peace and quiet.

"Dude, mom's here! We're starting the search for that octoling now!" Upon saying that, his brother looked over at him, his attitude perking up slightly as he rubbed one of his eyes.

"Mom's here?" Thad asked, confused in his voice as Lazarus got up to his feet.  
"Yeah, come on, let's go!" Lazarus replied, waiting for his brother as he saw Thad quickly getting up as well before following him.

Upon reaching the tunnel intersecting the two areas, he could see his mother excitedly waiting for them as he ran towards her with his brother following close behind.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hey everyone, Epsilon here. I'm writing this note here in regards to a review I got from Punished 'Dread' Angel, and I want to clear up a few things about his thoughts on me. Now, don't get me wrong, having a negative thought about me is perfectly okay if I do something wrong, as long as you give me a solid reason why. I may be an egotistical bastard sometimes, I may be too emotional, etcetera.**

 **But if there's one thing I do, is that I always put my community, family, friends or other people first before myself, even if that kind of thing is dangerous for me.  
A few days ago, there's been some drama going on at my Discord server regarding about Dread and the community, and how he's made a new Discord. Whether you join his or mine, it's totally up to you. I won't be going into too much information about what happened, but to put it lightly, he dislikes it, thanks to a manipulative, unknown third party that have played us both like puppets.**

 **I feel as a whole, that these recent events have been an inconvenience, and a hindrance in our community's advancement, including Dread's. The reason we made these Discords, was to create a community that anyone can join, and have fun in while making new friends. My Discord might not be the absolute best community, but me and the moderators try to provide as much fun as possible for those wanting to join and see how they can improve to become a better writer, or just have fun overall writing stories and sharing them on there while playing Splatoon 2 together.**

 **As for Dread? Well, he has wanted to make his own community, and run it his way since these recent events. I don't know for sure how he runs it, but good luck running a community, man. It's not easy, especially when you're in college and drama in the Discord happens.**

 **Anyways, the next chapter will hopefully be up sometime next week, considering I have a few assignments I have to write for the college I go to. I know these first 5 chapters have been a slow start to the story, but this is hopefully where it will start to pick up from here on out.**

 **Thank you, and good night. I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


	6. The Search

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter VI: The Search**_

Marie barged into the cabin, grabbing the looks of her cousin and Ariel as they turned towards her.

"Marie? What's-"  
"They're here!" She announced, cutting Callie off. "Ariel, in here, now!" Marie, hasty in her voice, slid open the door to her and Callie's bedroom as Ariel's eyes broadened.

"W-wait, who!?" Callie asked as the octoling got off the sofa in a heartbeat, following Marie into the bedroom as the idol closed the doors behind her.

"Marie, what's going on?!" Ariel asked, confused about everything that was going on.  
"Hagar's here!" Marie answered shortly after her question. "You know, the head of security? She's here, along with an entire squad of inklings outside!" She finished, looking tense about the situation as Ariel watched her walking towards a nearby wardrobe, just before Callie opened the doors, a look of surprise on her.

"Wait, Hagar's here?!" Callie questioned her cousin while Marie took off her kimono, tossing Callie some sunglasses that weren't the hypnoshades.

"I don't have time to explain, Callie! She got here early, thanks to those two that came here!" She said, sounding vexed as she rummaged through the piece of finely-crafted closet.  
"'Those two'?" The black-tentacled idol responded, puzzled as Ariel watched the conversation play out, noticing Agent 4 peeking her head into the room, just as puzzled as everyone else as Marie threw out some clothes from the wardrobe, each side of the interior conveniently labelled with a green or purple marker as the pop star took out some headphones that she put on from the green side.  
"Yeah, they happen to be brothers! One of them even tried hitting on Agent 4, that...!" Everyone fell silent once they heard Agent 4 retch at her answer, Marie turning to look at her as the inkling girl left the room, disgusted.  
"Wait, seriously!?" Callie was shocked while Marie simply rolled her eyes, responding with a: "Yup." before she went back to looking through the closet while her cousin went to check on Agent 4, Marie pulling out a green hat with an orange logo from within, followed by a jacket with a green color on the bottom and a black one on the top before finally taking out a set of grey mountain boots that she put on first, snugly fitting her feet into them.

"Marie...?" Ariel blurted out, the idol turning to look at her.  
"Yes, Ariel?" Marie walked over to her, putting on jacket as Ariel sat on one of the beds, a hand on her thigh as she looked at the singer.  
"Don't make them find me, please..." She muttered, Marie noticing the fear on her face growing ever so slightly. "...they're gonna take me away, brainwash me, and-" Her eyes widened before she began breathing heavily, moving back against a wall in panic as images of all the things Hagar and her group would do to her flashed through her eyes before feeling the idol's hands coming into contact with her arms.

"Ariel, calm down, alright?" She waited for her to do so, to which the octoling did some seconds later as she tried controlling her breathing. "They're not gonna find you, as long as you're in this room right here." The octoling's vibrations stopped after a while, her body relaxing after a bit as Marie brushed her in an attempt to calm her down completely.  
"But... but I just want someone to stay with me! I don't want to be alone in here!" Ariel raised her voice somewhat in desperation, Marie shushing her as she covered her mouth, telling her to be quiet.

A feeling of dread loomed over her as Marie let out a sigh.

"Look at me, Ariel..." She muttered, sincere in her tone as she watched the octoling try to cope with the situation she's in.  
"Everything's gonna be okay, but Callie and I have to go. Just promise, that when I leave this room, you'll avoid stepping out of here until we're back, got it?" Ariel nodded silently, looking down again as Marie put on a surgeon's mask. "There's a camera system on the laptop if you want to check on us. Feel free to do anything you'd like on it, really." She eyed at a laptop of on the green bed as Ariel saw it, the computer sporting a white color with the squid sisters emblem on it, Ariel heading over to inspect it before turning it on as the squid sister walked out of the bedroom.

"Wait!" Ariel said, the idol turning to look at her.  
"What!?" Marie turned around, her voice starting to become hurrying before she realized she hadn't explained the password to her computer was once Ariel showed her the login screen. "Oh, right, the password is "calamari", all lowercase. Gotta go, bye!" She closed the door without saying another word, Ariel wanting to say something regarding her well-being before noticing the door was already closed.

With an exhale, Ariel looked down at the keyboard, staring at it for a while as she began typing the password she was given into the login screen.

As expected, it worked, and she was soon greeted with a picture of Callie grinning at a mirror next to Marie, who had taken the photo. In the picture, Callie and Marie were wearing their usual squid sister outfits, doing their signature pose, holding each other's hands in front of the object that showed their reflections with the latter of the two holding a phone in one of her hands, most likely having taken the picture as Ariel saw the hypnoshades laying on the nightstand separating their beds in the corner, contained in a glass box. Then again, it could of just been the modified shades that didn't have the whole 'brainwashing gimmick' to it.

A curious, short-lived smile formed on Ariel's lips as she stared at the picture for a while before looking at some of the icons and programs on the computer. Standard icons that gave access to the SplatNet along with several folders, games, music programs and the usual paper bin program laying in the top left corner. Nothing of interest here...

Except for several icons that caught her attention to the right.

All of them displayed what looked to be menacing, black silhouettes with tentacles around it, sporting green eyes with tattered wings behind them along with a dark circle around them. The one she was looking at specifically, was the one having a camera icon layered over it, the name of the program being called "CAMERA" while the other icon underneath it was called "GROUP MEETING" with a group of inkling icons layered over the silhouette.

Upon double-clicking the program with the camera on it, a window immediately popped up as she was greeted with a black screen in the center, with the exception of it saying, that it was downloading something before another message was showcased afterwards: "WELCOME, MARIE OF THE SQUID SISTERS." it said in a green, bold text as several selections were presented afterwards.  
The selections were: "REPORTS" "CAMERA SYSTEM" "HISTORY" and "PROFILES" with retro-esque selection sounds being played upon hovering her mouse over one of the choices.

Curious, she clicked on the choice to the far left, being greeted with another window popping up that showcased several text documents, all conveniently labelled: "Report", the first one starting from number 1, all the way up to number 28 along with several other files that showcased how to make a report about a hypothetical sighting of an escaped octarian, or any suspicious activity in Octo Canyon, reporting it to something known as "The Inkuisition." and their head of security.  
What these reports must of detailed, Ariel had no idea as she continued scrolling through the folder before reaching the end. Nothing of interest here, with the exception of several text documents written by Marie herself labelled: "Diary" with the same use of numbers leading up to 9. She didn't want to check it, or the rest of the other selections out for now, more interested in the camera system for now as she clicked on it.

She needed to know how the Squid Sisters and Agent 4 were doing.

Upon clicking the icon displaying a security camera on top of the "CAMERA" selection, she was met with a loading screen before being treated to live footage of the Squid Sisters and Agent 4 standing behind a blue-haired inkling woman, presumably Hagar as Ariel saw the head of security herself packing a charger on her back. She was awestruck at the size of the weapon, seeing that it was bigger than any other charger she's ever seen before, continuing to analyze what was standing right outside the cabin she was in.  
To the woman's sides were two inklings, presumably her children, both boys having the same hair color as their mother with one of the two being around her and Agent 4's age, holding a set of dualies while the other looking to be much older, wielding a charger with a scope attached on his shoulder while the Squid Sisters along with Agent 4 stood there, looking at everyone that was in front of them.

Key word that made her terrified: **Everyone**. What made her feel that, were the squadrons of inklings grouped together in front of Hagar, all of them packing weapons, and wearing some kind of body armor on them. They weren't just in front of the woman she was so afraid of, though. She also saw some of them firing their weapons at the balloons near the firing range, especially afraid with how they rapidly fired at the balloons until it popped, before a new one reappeared in its place, to which they resumed their firing the second it was fully inflated.

She watched, as Hagar and the Squid Sisters were talking to each other while the younger of the two boys watched them, while his older sibling was staring at Agent 4, a subtle smirk on his face as the inkling girl would sometimes look at him back before looking away.

What they were talking about, Ariel had no idea, thanks to the lack of audio.  
All she could do now: Was guess.

* * *

"Alright, listen up, everyone!" Hagar announced once everyone had gathered around, including the Squid Sisters as the squadron of inklings went quiet, the same going for Lazarus and his brother.

"You know why we're all here, so let's not waste any time, and get to work! We have an octoling to find, who was reported running away from work last night!" She pulled a piece of paper out from her jacket's pocket, showing the image of what the octoling looked like: She wore a white t-shirt with an octarian logo on it, black buttoned pants, grey socks and white sea slugs, her tentacle color being red, just like the other octolings Lazarus had heard of. "I was told, that she was headed to Slimeskin Garrison, thanks to a tip I got from an elite octoling that tried to stop her!" Lazarus listened, only to be somewhat distracted as he saw his brother looking at Agent 4, more so interested in her than their mother's description of the task she was giving everyone as the girl was trying to ignore him.

"Could I interrupt for a second, ma'am?" One of the male inklings among the group asked, Hagar's eyes perking up.

"Of course, what is it?" She asked, waiting for his question.  
"What if the octoling has moved from the garrison to another sector of the canyon?" He asked, Hagar flashing a confident smile at her subordinate's question.  
"Good question! There's a reason why I brought you all here with my children today!" She rubbed Lazarus' hair as he watched his brother, who was pushed away from Agent 4 by Marie, much to Callie's confusion as the men and women raised their eyebrows as well, just as puzzled as to why Thad was pushed away from the agent.

"I got a question too, Miss Hagar!" One of the female inklings raised her voice after witnessing this, his mother acknowledging her, asking her what the question was.  
"Which positions are you gonna assign us to?" The girl asked, her voice clearly excited.

"I was just about to get there, thank you!" She clasped her hands together, nodding at everyone while Lazarus watched and listened.

"Alright, listen up!" Hagar announced, grabbing everyone's attention.  
"MOLLUS!" She gazed at a group of emerald-colored inklings, grabbing their attention as their talking went silent. "You'll be coming with me to Slimeskin Garrison. Team Ceph," She looked at the inklings that were a cyan color. "you're going to Beaker's Depot with the Squid Sisters, and... Decap?" A squad of green inklings looked to be busy talking with each other before Hagar properly grabbed their attention by clearing her throat and calling out their team name once more, a bit annoyed.  
"You will be looking through Suction-Cup Outpost with Thaddeus! And as for you, Lazarus and... "Agent 4," was it?" She looked at them both, Agent 4 emitted a noise of acceptance while Lazarus smiled at his mother as she did the same to him and the girl.  
"Right, um... You two will be looking through Tentakeel Outpost together!" Lazarus saw his brother, noticing the jealous look in his eyes as Agent 4 walked towards him, shyly offering a hand to him. He was about to introduce himself before his mother interrupted by standing between the two.

"Now, remember this, everyone! You're not allowed to leave your positions once you've safely super jumped to your location until me, and your designated escorts have arrived! Do any of you have questions?" She asked, none of the inklings raising a hand as Hagar nodded, a humph escaping her.

"No questions? Good, THEN LET'S RIDE OUT!" She ordered, raising a hand as everyone in front of her yelled out a: "YES, MA'AM!" before they turned into their squid forms, super-jumping towards their positions with only Hagar, the Squid Sisters, Lazarus, Thaddeus and Agent 4 being the ones left.

"Mom?" Lazarus pulled her jacket as Hagar hummed, turning towards him.

"Yes, sweetie?" She bowed, hands on her knees.

The inkling boy remained still, having thought about doing something for a while involving him and his mother.  
"Can I... stay with you and Thad next week?" He asked, his voice stilted as Hagar's expression turned into that of surprise, as if she hadn't expected the question Lazarus went for.

"Of course you can!" She answered, a heartwarming smile appearing on her lips.  
"I'd love to have you come over! It's been so long, since..." Hagar trailed off, having knelt in front of him as she fondled with his hair once more before retracting her arms back to herself, getting up, and facing towards the sector of Octo Canyon where she was supposed to go.

"Since... what? That I spent time with you and Thad?" Lazarus finished for her, but she didn't seem to care, only looking at Slimeskin Garrison before she batted an eye at everyone.

"We'll meet up back here in an hour! Good luck, everyone!" Her eyes turned towards Lazarus before she turned into her squid form, leaping into the air towards Slimeskin Garrison as Thaddeus let out an arrogant chuckle, folding his arms together while Lazarus was confused by what his mother's behavior.

"Welp, see ya when I get back, lil' bro." Thaddeus smirked before super-jumping to his destination as well.

"Wait, Thad!" Lazarus called out, reaching an arm to the jet of ink that was left behind by his brother.  
" _What the heck is going on?_ " Lazarus thought to himself as a moment of silence filled the void between Agent 4, Lazarus and the Squid Sisters.

Marie was watching the two along with her cousin, unsure of what to do aside from heading to Beaker's Depot with Callie as she looked at her relative, scratching the back of her own tentacles while doing so.

"Sooooo..." She ended the silence, grabbing the looks of Lazarus and Agent 4. "I suppose me and Callie will be going to Beaker's Depot, then?" She prodded her, waiting for a response from the dark-tentacled idol.

Lazarus couldn't help, but feel like something was a bit off in her tone, as noted by her lack of intrigued excitement.  
"Hm? Oh, right!" Callie exclaimed, her excitement, too sounding forced as Marie beckoned to follow her, just before turning into her squid form, a first time for Lazarus as her squid was a color of green, and had the same eyemark and eyes as her humanoid form before she leapt towards her destination.

"Hey, wait!" Lazarus said as he reached a hand of his towards Callie, just as she was about to follow Marie, the squid sister shooting him an expression, as well as a sound of curiosity.  
"I've actually never seen your squid forms before! Can I see yours!?" Lazarus said, intrigued as a half-smile crept on Callie.

"Oh! Heh, well... I don't really wanna show you it, since..." She mumbled something inaudible, her cheeks turning a pink color as she looked to be in her thoughts. "...it's, kinda awkward for us to show it to a fan, you know..." She looked down, her eyes looking away from him. "Anyways, catch you two later!" She forced a smile before quickly turning into her squid form, the inkling boy barely catching a glimpse of it as Callie's was a pink color with the same features as Marie's, except more energetic-looking before she super jumped away.  
Lazarus wanted to yell for her to wait, before realizing Callie and Marie were already gone to where they were assigned to, leaving only himself and Agent 4 as they looked at each other.

An awkward moment was between the two before Lazarus looked at the tunnel leading to the field of kettles, realizing that he had a job to do for his mother.

"Yo..." Lazarus nervously began the conversation, awkwardly looking at her as she eyed him. "...should we start looking around, or what?" He asked as he began heading towards the tunnel, Agent 4 letting out a gurgled, cheerful-sounding noise as she followed him. It was hard for him to understand her, but one look at her body language told him, that she was more than eager to begin the hunt with him.

Excited, he jogged towards one of the smaller kettles upon exiting the tunnel, standing above one before turning into a squid along with Agent 4, jumping inside the kettle as it whistled.

* * *

 _ **Half an hour or so later...**_

"Damn it, where is she!?" Lazarus said to himself after he and Agent 4 popped out of the large kettle in the center, both their tentacles now sporting an orange color. Sadly, their expedition through the domes was a failure, seeing as they haven't managed to spot the octoling even once, with the exception of a few puddles of magenta ink.

Along with that, the other groups have contacted them several times through Agent 4's pair of headsets, reporting no sightings of the octoling as well in the other sectors.

Things were looking bleak for them as the inkling boy let out a sigh, sitting down on the kettle's side with Agent 4, who looked just as disappointed as him as she let out an audible whine.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay, 4!" He smiled as optimistically he could, laying down on the hard ground below him. "I bet, the others will find her in the other sectors, I'm sure of it!" He watched the clouds in the sky, trying to make out some shapes as he heard the inkling girl emanating a sound of happiness, spying her pulling out a notepad along with a pen from her jacket before she begun writing something on it. After a while, she ripped a piece of paper off it, letting out a "Woomy!" before handing him it.

"What's this?" He sat up as he grabbed the paper, wondering what was written on it.

" _Yeah, I hope they do!_ " It said as Lazarus was at first confused, before he perked up after realizing it was an answer in regards to his statement, looking up at her, noticing a beaming look on her expression.

"Well, look at that! Didn't know, that you had some sort of communication that isn't sign language!" He uttered blissfully as she grinned at him, Lazarus returning back to his previous position of laying on the ground again, bathing in the sun.

"So, I guess, that you're still mad about my brother trying to score you earlier?" His mood shifted gradually as Agent 4 sat next to him, emitting an annoyed murmur before writing on the paper she gave him, handing it back upon finishing her answer.

" _Yeah, w_ _hat the heck's wrong with your brother!? I'm only 14, and he's MUCH older than me!_ " The word that was capitalized was underlined, hearing her humph from the agent as he turned his head towards her. Telling by the writing and expression, Lazarus knew, that she was still irked by the events that happened beforehand.

"Look, I'm sorry for just letting that happen! He's been like that, ever since he first reached S+!" Lazarus answered, irritated as well as he rested one of his hands on his belly. "Giant ego, and all that, you know? Been having that for the last two years now since he wrecked the competition during that Callie VS Marie splatfest!" He heard Agent 4 letting out a curious hum, hearing the sound of the pencil coming in contact with the notepad again before another paper was given to him.

" _I see. And h_ _ow big is his ego_ _?_ " The inkling boy wondered for a moment, wanting to come up with a clever response before a smirk crept on him.

"An ego big enough to fill this canyon, that's for sure." He heard the inkling girl let out a single laugh, as well as seeing her attitude going from annoyed to that of relaxation, Lazarus smiling at his success in humoring her a bit before they eventually settled down.  
"Hey..." Agent 4 focused her eyes on him, raising an eyebrow. "...I didn't mean to let Thad do that to you, you know." She hummed, listening to him as he continued. "I just... ugh, do you forgive me for that?" He asked, still feeling guilty about the whole ordeal as Agent 4 did an "OK" sign, both eventually shaking each other's hands before they heard an audible voice coming from the inkling girl's headset.

" _ **Agent 4, how's it going with Lazarus?**_ " Lazarus heard his mother's voice, his expression perking up as he asked Agent 4 if he could lend them for a moment, the girl nodding to him as she passed them over without question.  
Putting them on, Lazarus could hear Hagar calling out his name along with the inkling girl's for a response, asking her if she was there.

"Hey, mom!" He said upon putting the device on his head, the headphones providing a snug, comfortable feeling around his ears as his mother let out a sigh of relief.  
" ** _Oh, Lazarus, I...!_** " She could be heard mumbling something, sounding relieved due to the sigh she emitted. " _ **Have you found the octoling yet?**_ "  
"Nope, not one trace of her, aside from a few puddles of ink we cleaned up." Lazarus answered while Agent 4 was heading towards a nearby tree, sitting down against it, and stretching her limbs out as she closed her eyes.

" _ **We're having the same problem here, sweetie. We can't find her, and Thaddeus, as well as the Squid Sisters, have told me the same thing!**_ " She sounded mystified, just as Lazarus could hear someone cutting in, albeit too quiet for him to hear.  
"Well, that's certainly weird..." He muttered to himself as his mother told him to wait a second before telling the one on the other end to continue the search until every nook and cranny had been checked.

Seconds passed by, before a thought crossed into Lazarus' mind.

"Mom?" He uttered, waiting for her to acknowledge him, before asking if his mother was there due to the silence.  
" _ **Sorry, what is it**_ _ **, dear?**_ "  
"Do you think, she could of snuck her way to Inkopolis?" Lazarus asked, as he walked over to a nearby billboard sign detailing Tentakeel Outpost's history and description in an octarian text. He thought to himself, that since she couldn't be found in Octo Canyon, Inkopolis might of been another choice of interest, and a place for an octoling to hide in.

" _ **What?! No, that...! That can't be possible!**_ " She replied, sounding doubtful about the idea he had in mind.  
"Why?" Lazarus asked, puzzled by Hagar's answer.  
" _ **There's only one way from Octo Canyon to Inkopolis, and that way's under security! Also, if she actually WAS in Inkopolis, she would of been reported to either me, or my co-workers like, right now!**_ " She must of been telling the truth, seeing as all the other paths in the manhole must of led to other parts of the city, along with the cameras stationed everywhere around the islands. The path he took was unique in a sense, seeing as it went in a straight line for a while compared to the usual winding, maze-like paths that had multiple passageways at every other end.

"Then she's still gotta be here somewhere. Have you checked Cephalon HQ?" Lazarus suggested, thinking the octoling could of been there.

" _ **That really won't be necessary, since the guards down there keep everyone in check. We're doing one more search around this area, then we're heading home.**_ " She said, stern in her voice as Lazarus could hear some voices again in the background, calling for his mother's name. " _ **Right, gotta go now. I'll see you soon, Lazzie!**_ "

"Please, don't ever call me that again, mom. Love you." Lazarus responded, slightly embarrassed before the headphones began playing music once his mother cut the signal between them. The inkling found the song itself catchy to listen to as he bobbed his head to it for a good minute or so before feeling someone poking his shoulder.  
It was Agent 4, and she asked through her body language if she could have her headset back by tapping it and pointing at herself.

"Oh, sorry! I was just listening to this song!" He said as he gave them back, Agent 4 looking to be happy that he liked the music as she wrote something to him.

" _You like it?_ " He responded with a nod, the inkling girl looking to be even more upbeat-looking now before Lazarus felt his stomach rumbling, which caused him to drop his happy demeanor.  
The inkling girl tilted her head, looking at Lazarus' stomach as he clutched it a bit, just before she wrote something on the notepad again.

The sentence on the paper, once revealed, said: " _Are you hungry?_ ", an innocent-looking smirk appearing on her.

"Kind of, yeah..." He let out a small burp in the process, feeling stupid for not having brought any food with him.  
"Only thing I ate this morning was a piece of toast, and nothing else. Really should of brought something, before I got here..." He soon saw Agent 4 jogging towards the tunnel leading towards the cabin, motioning him to follow her as he does so, interested.

* * *

Inside the cabin, Ariel was looking through the cameras scattered throughout Octo Canyon, every passing minute forcing her sense of terror to creep further into her subconscious as she saw how relentless the inkling squadrons were looking for her. For her, it's as if they were programmed robots being told what to do by their masters, in this case, Hagar, not caring one bit about what she felt, only caring about getting the job done as quick as possible as one of them popped out of a kettle.

She felt her body shaking as she continued watching the cameras, only for her to almost let out a shriek upon checking the camera in Tentakeel Outpost displaying Agent 4 and one of Hagar's sons, the younger of the two boys she was grouped up with heading to the cabin she was in. She quickly slammed the laptop shut before hiding under the blanket in her octopus form, the warm, silky fabric covering her as she waited in anticipation for what happened next.

She fell completely silent, even holding her breath for a moment once she heard the sound of the door opening, followed by footsteps as she carefully lifted the blanket with her tentacles, peeking an eye out in the process.

"Damn, this is actually a nice place you all got here!" Ariel heard the voice of the boy comment as she remained hidden, feeling as though she was about to be caught by this inkling if she made even one noise. The boy had somewhat of an accent to his voice, sounding slightly modern, yet, fancy as well.

"Wait, you have seanwiches here!?" His voice became surprised, Ariel's fear lessening as a result of this as she hears the fridge in the living room opening.  
"SWEET!" The boy sounded happy to find the same food she ate last night as Ariel quietly pulled the blankets off and turned back into her humanoid form. She could hear the microwave going off, assuming the boy and Agent 4 getting themselves something to eat as the sound of the Hagar's son could be heard discussing with the mute inkling girl for a while before the beeping noises signaled that the food in the microwave was ready to be served.

Feeling as though the boy wouldn't hear her, she opened up the laptop before checking the camera system again.  
" _Okay_ _, pull yourself together. He doesn't know you're here, as long as you aren't too loud. I'm safe here... right?_ " She thought to herself, somewhat worried about the situation before taking a deep breath to calm herself down. After all, considering how well-hidden the room was, she was in one of the safest spots while everyone were looking for her as she flipped through the various sectors once more, noticing just how desperate the search squads were getting while Callie and Marie were watching by the launch pad as the various inklings complained at them.

A hint of a grin spread on the octoling's face as she was slightly amused by this, yet, concerned about what would happen if they found her.

Her attention to the camera feed was cut short a few minutes later, as what she heard from the boy in the other room made her eyes perk up to the door.  
"It's not fair for them, though!" She hasn't been paying too much attention to the discussion, but Ariel's interest immediately shifted once she heard the boy's tone having shifted from his usual, cheerful self, to that of annoyance as she began listening to the conversation he and Agent 4 had.

"I mean, how the octarians have been treated by us lately!" He seemed to answer back, sounding frustrated as Ariel stood up from the bed and went over to the door with the laptop in hand, taking her eyes away from the camera feed as she placed an ear on the wall.  
"It's just... UGH, IT'S SO UNFAIR! Marina gets to stay in Inkopolis, since she and Pearl are famous, but any other octarian gets banned, because they're something else?!" He was on the verge of yelling, before he could be heard sighing, followed by silence.

Ariel pulled her ear off the wall and looked at the door, her confusion slowly turning into that of curiosity as she continued listening.

"Mom and Thad don't even like Off the Hook, just because an octoling is one of the hosts! I'm just..." His last words were inaudible, too quiet for her to hear as she stepped back, indifferent on her expression now.

Ariel wanted to open the door and take peek inside, but decided against it out of fear of the inkling boy revealing her location to everyone else as she looked down at the laptop again, about to check the cameras once more before a blaring noise emanated from it as she let out a yell, dropping the computer on the bed out of shock. She had not expected the computer to be this loud, considering how quiet even the footage was, noticing that the screen displayed a call from someone named "Cap'n Cuttlefish". The name rang a bell to her for a second, before a realization hit her.

"What was that...?" She heard the boy ask in the other room, confused as Ariel now knew, that she had given her position away upon letting out that yell. Her eyes widened with horror as she heard footsteps approaching the door, her fear returning to her like a predator finding its prey as she furiously jumped onto the bed, and hid herself under the blanket and laptop once more, turning back into her octopus form as she peeked out the blanket.

"Hey, I didn't know you and the Squid Sisters had another room in here!" He said, sounding interested as the doors were slid open.

That noise alone made her stop breathing as she felt like becoming as hard as an unmoving statue. His tentacle color was now an orange color instead of blue, and now, with out the camera filter, she could see his clothing being a blue jacket with straps on it, black pants with orange stripes on them, and black socks. She could even see Agent 4 looking afraid, that he found the room she was hiding in.  
"Hello?" Ariel heard him call out, followed by his footsteps walking around the room as she blinked, not taking her eyes off of him one bit as she prayed to whatever god there was for him to not find her. "Is anyone here?" She saw him pull open the shower curtains before she saw him making his way towards the laptop, immediately hiding in the blanket again while trying to not give away her spot. She felt herself becoming warm, thanks to the laptop's air conditioner warming the blanket on her as she braced herself, ready to run away the moment her cover was blown before feeling something being lifted from her.

"Captain Cuttlefish?" She heard the inkling boy mumble out said as Ariel calmed down. A quiet sigh of relief escaping the octoling before she felt one of her tentacles being crushed, as though they were sat upon as her eyes widened in pain. Try as she might, she couldn't hold back from letting out a yell as Ariel began flailing underneath the sheets like a wild animal, the boy who sat on her jumping off, letting out a yell of his own as Ariel turned into her humanoid form, tossing a set of pillows at him before cornering herself, pulling the blanket towards her as she saw the boy right in front of her, who was looking back at her with a look of surprise and shock after dodging, and grabbing the objects she threw at him.

" **NO!** " Ariel yelled, her voice ringing throughout the cabin. " **LEAVE ME ALONE, I DON'T WANNA GO BACK!** " She gradually raised her voice, frightened for her life as she pulled the blanket over herself. " **DON'T TAKE ME AWAY, I DON'T WANT TO BE BRAINWASHED, PLEASE, I'M SORRY FOR RUNNING AWAY!** " Ariel begged, curling up into a ball as tears began streaming down her face.

She knew at that moment, that she had been caught.

* * *

Lazarus stared at the octoling he had just found, stupefied beyond belief at how he of all inklings found her in the place he had least expected to find her in: Inside the cabin, in the Squid Sisters' own bedroom, no less.

With a jolt of excitement taking over his consciousness, he ran over to Agent 4, a wide grin spreading on his face.

"AGENT 4, I FOUND HER!" He exclaimed happily, the inkling girl looking surprised, her mouth agape as he ran back in, getting on the bed the octarian was on.

"Call mom and the others, now! They need to..." His excitement soon dropped, however. "...see this..." Lazarus stopped, remembering his short discussion with Agent 4 about how he felt about the octarians and how his people treated them, just now noticing how scared and frightened the octoling under the sheets was of him.  
He felt his joyous, excited expression going away as well, being replaced with regret upon hearing her quiet sobs, all the while desperately begging for him in the most terrified, yet, softest voice to leave her alone, not take her to his mother and brainwashing her, as well as apologizing continuously for hiding in the cabin's bedroom in a state of complete panic.

A wave of conflict found itself in his head, taking over his previous intention of finding this octarian, and reporting them to his mother, sitting on his knees as he moved his hand over to the blanket the octoling was hiding underneath before slowly taking it off.  
The beautiful, red-podded hair of the octoling emerged before the whole blanket collapsed on itself. She wore what was exactly displayed on the picture his mother showed everyone: A white-colored t-shirt with an octarian logo on it, the difference being, how it looked to have been in the waterworks for too long. She wore black, somewhat ragged cowboy pants with buttons and belts on it along with grey socks with several holes on the bottom as she sniffed once she looked up at him. This was the exact same girl he was shown that his mother, and everyone else were looking for.

And she was terrified of him. Most likely, since he was working with his mother, and was unwilling to go back to Cephalon HQ as he noticed what looked to be a camera feed on the laptop he almost dropped on the ground after jumping from his discovery. Either two of the squid sisters would of been mad at him, which caused him to be relieved as he checked what was on the program the octoling had been looking out of curiosity as he saw her watching him, unblinking, and keeping a distance from him.

Lazarus saw, what looked to be a camera feed displaying his mother along with her squadron, hopelessly looking around the area before deciding to check on the sector no one was looking through out of interest: Cephalon HQ. He was excited of what this project his mother had been talking to him nonstop about for the past, several days. She had been keeping it discreet, yet, it intrigued him more than anything as he hovered his mouse over the Cephalon HQ sector.

He was stoked. He couldn't wait, to see how the attraction currently looked like.  
Once he opened the camera feed, however, he knew why the octoling had run away from that sector.

Most of the inhabitants looked to be on a strike of some kind, some of them not even willing to go to work as one of the octolings wearing a piece of green, flowing kelp on her hair yelled at one of the workers to get to work, despite their protest and reasons before being they were sent off to do their work anyway along with most of the other protesters that were neutralized by the guards down there wearing power armor-esque gear.  
Not only that, but none of the octarians, including the larger ones wielding machine guns and chargers seemed to be doing anything about the work they've been forced to go through since they were banned from his capital city, only watching the octarians rebel against the stress-inducing work. They looked scared, obviously not wanting to take part in any of this conflict and fighting.

What caught his attention the most, however, were the octolings. One look at them, and he knew, that something was wrong with how they acted. Judging by the sunglasses they were wearing, it was clear to him, that they were under some sort of mind control with their slight, robotic movement with their arms and legs. The most eerie part, though, were the shades themselves. They looked so similar to the sunglasses his brother showed him, his jaw dropping slightly before feeling the octoling moving slightly behind him, turning around, seeing her having balled up her hands into fists, as if she was ready to defend herself.

"Please..." She spoke, in a hushed tone. "...don't take me back there, or..." He stared at her, not knowing what to say. The only thing he could do, was know, how miserable she was as he sympathized her, understanding, that the octoling didn't want to go back there, as he saw one of the supervisors on the feed yelling at one of her co-workers for not doing their job properly while his captive-to-be tried to say something, only managing to babble out a few single words.

He continued watching the feed play out for a few more seconds until things began getting physical, closing the laptop at that point as he let out an exhale.  
He faced the octarian behind him, not knowing what to do as she continued being in a defensive position, ready to punch him if he were to get close.

Both of them didn't say a word to each other for the next few minutes that passed, only staring, and analyzing each other as Lazarus thought of all the things she must of gone through during her time spent down there.

"Damn..." Lazarus finally muttered, breaking the quiet, dead air around them after a while as he put a hand over his temple, caressing it a bit while the octoling remained still, a shaky exhale emanating from her as she gazed at him, looking as though she was about to cry out of terror.  
"...you obviously don't like it there too much, huh?" He asked, his voice remaining calm, and understanding as slowly, but surely, the octoling grabbed one of the pillows, sobbing into it as he watched her, not expecting it to have been this bad for her as he attempted to give the octoling some form of reassurnace, edging a bit closer towards her as he patted her shoulders.

He noticed the pillow earning a wet spot on it, thanks to the octarian's tears coming in contact with it as her arms wrapped themselves harder around it.

"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you, please, calm down!" He tried reassuring her, trying to hold himself back from getting too emotional as he slowly, but carefully went even closer to her, now sitting directly in front of her until he heard her mutter something too incomprehensible for him to understand.

"I'm sorry?" He asked, hearing the octoling choke back a sob as she buried her face into his jacket.

"Wh... who are you...?" She asked, Lazarus wanting to answer her question before she cut him off. "Y-You're not gonna take me back there, are you!?" She yelled, panicking as Lazarus felt his body tensing up a bit.

"Freaking calm yourself down, jeez! I'm not gonna do that, okay?" He boldly stated, stopping himself from getting too worked up as he tried to sedate her the best way he could while Agent 4 watched them both.  
"Name's Laz, by the way. Lazarus Saffire." He answered shortly after, noticing the octoling having calmed down a bit as she looked up at him from the pillow, a doubtful, uneasy look on her as she looked down at her cushion, at the stain of ink she had made.

A sigh escaped the boy as he realized, that his attempt at reassuring her wasn't doing anything. That was, until he realized, that he might have another solution on his hands.

"Hey... what's your name?" He questioned, clumsily so as the girl in front of him looked at him afterward, looking surprised by his question as stared at him for a good while, unsure of what to say.  
As Lazarus was about to ask her if he should just leave her alone, the octoling answered his question, albeit anxiously.

"Ariel..." She murmured, a sad smile sneaking its way onto her expression as her grip around her pillow loosened.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Autumn vacation is almost here, everyone! Only 1 and a half week left to go before I get my well-deserved break from college!**

 **This note won't be long, considering how nothing eventful's been going on, but am I glad to report, that one of my essays is now complete! I only have to finish one more, and turn it in, then I'm in the clear! I believe that before autumn vacation, I'll have to do a quick test to see what I've learned so far, and overall, with me currently being 1 month into my fear, my opinion on college has changed a bit.**

 **It most certainly is stressful, that's for sure. Every day feels so long having to stay at college until 3:15, approximately 7 hours or so, which is why progress on these chapters have been somewhat slowly recently. Not that I'm complaining, since when I get back home, I can do whatever I want, aside from checking Outlook for any updates on certain classes.**

 **Some of my classmates are anti-social, including myself, sometimes. I still have some people there that I personally know, and care about, and even new friends that have been supportive of me. Especially when I've been doing some weird things that I don't remember of. I won't go into too much detail, but let's just say, that so far, it's been decent for me, and I'm hoping to learn more the following months!**

 **Now, I've been thinking of doing this for a while, but if you want to join the Discord I've been talking about so much lately, you can do so right now! Right now, the community is over 60 members, and we're going to continue growing until we become one archive united together! The link will be below this paragraph! For now, I bit you all farewell, and I'll see you all in the next chapter! Adios!**

 _ **discord . gg / HXbbqWg** **(You need to remove the spaces to create the link.)**_


	7. Something Feels Off

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter VII: Something Feels Off**_

"Ariel, huh?" Lazarus asked, the octoling murmuring out a positive response, looking to have gotten comfortable around the inkling's presence as he went a bit closer to her, which Ariel flinched at first, but later calmed down after he gestured a hand to her.

"Yeah, t... that's my name..." She answered as she gently held it, not knowing what to do. Lazarus was a bit surprised at her reaction, not expecting her to accept him like this so quickly as he felt a tingling sensation.

"Holding my hand, already?" He asked, flushing a bit with an interested look as Ariel shied away from his question, subtlety nodding at him as her cheeks became a bit warm.  
"Hm, you okay if I let go?" The inkling's expression turned relaxed as he did what he asked, the octoling immediately retracting her hand back to herself, murmuring something about Hagar he didn't hear.

Needless to say, the two felt awkward, unsure of what to say to each other before Lazarus spotted Agent 4 watching them both from the door, a warm smirk on her lips.

"AGENT 4!" Lazarus said as jumped away from Ariel, his face slowly turned into the same color as his tentacles while Ariel turned towards him and the agent. "You-! Don't stand there and look at us like that, we were just... talking about stuff, that's all..." He nervously grinned at her as the inkling girl formed a teasing smirk on her, a quiet laugh coming out of her as she sat in front of him and Ariel.  
"It's not what you think, okay?!" Lazarus said, clearly annoyed while Agent 4 obliviously shrugged at him, taking a bite out of the seanwich she held in hand.

"You know each other?" Ariel asked timidly, Lazarus batting an eye at her.

"We actually just met today..." Lazarus muttered, still trying to bring himself back down-to-earth. "My bro tried flirtin' with her before we began looking for you, which, uh..." His nervous look returned as he noticed Agent 4 looking at him, annoyed as Lazarus chortled, having intentionally triggered something within her as he watched her blush before she half-smiled after a groan escaped her.

"Kinda failed and all that, but it WAS pretty funny, when she pushed him off the island." He grinned as Agent 4 smiled, still blushing as a quiet, jumbled laugh came out of her as she now found it funny herself before she got up from the bed to get herself something to drink, heading back to the other room as Ariel smiled, emitting a single: "Heh." as she didn't even look afraid of the inkling boy anymore, but was still somewhat wary around him.

"Sounds funny..." She muttered before Agent 4 came back in a hurry, holding her headphones as Lazarus could hear some ringing inside, the inkling girl pointing at them, then at him.

"Hold up, I'll be right back." He got up, much to Ariel's confusion as he picked up the piece of headgear before leaving the bedroom.  
"Hello?" Uttering to the microphone, Lazarus waited for an answer from the other side.

" _ **Hey, sweetie...**_ " His mother came on, disappointed in her tone.  
"Oh, hey, mom. Found the octoling, yet?" He asked, getting straight to the point as he heard Hagar sighing.  
" _ **No...**_ _ **We're coming to your post in 5 minutes.**_ " She said, the inkling boy looking back at Ariel in the bedroom with an eyebrow of his raised.

"Oh..." He asked, walking towards the octoling as she listened in on the conversation. "...really?"

" _ **W**_ _ **e checked everywhere, too, yeah! She wasn't here, or in any of the other sectors, though. It's the first time an octoling's managed to hide this well...**_ " Her tone became bitter, yet, impressed towards the other half of her sentence. Lazarus could feel his subconscious telling him to say where Ariel was as he continued staring at her, an exhale escaping him after thinking about his choice for a moment.

"That's a shame..." He said, faking his disappointment to his mother that he loved. "...would of been nice to see an octoling for the first time, too." Lazarus knew, that he couldn't afford to see Ariel go back to Cephalon HQ with a new pair of brainwashing shades on her, hearing his mother remainining quiet on her end before she spoke again, just after a thoughtful hum coming from her.

" _ **Yeah,**_ _ **I... I'll see you with Thaddeus near the cabin, Lazzie.**_ " She answered as the inkling nodded to himself, straight-faced.  
"Alright, see ya, mom." He cut the signal before looking back at Ariel, noticing how confused she was as Agent 4 picked up the headphones he gave her, and left the room to get herself something to drink.

"What?" He said, perplexed as Ariel kept staring at him, in disbelief.

"Why...?" She muttered under her breath, causing Lazarus to raise an eyebrow at her.  
"Hey, what's wrong?" Lazarus asked her.  
"Why'd you do that?" Her face became puzzled, Lazarus tilting his head at her in confusion.

"What do you mean?" He pulled out his phone, typing in his password as he began scrolling through his list of games.

"Y... You just... lied to her!" Ariel snapped at him suddenly, catching him off guard.  
"Hold on, what?" Even after being snapped at, Lazarus responded as calmly as he could at her after moving from her a bit, wanting to avoid scaring her again.  
"Aren't you supposed to tell her, that I'm here!?" She said, raising her voice slightly, doubtful at what Lazarus just did for her. He paused for a moment to look away from the screen at her, thinking about his choice of lying to his mother before tilting his head in the form of a shrug as he looked down at his phone again, playing a game of squid jump.

"For cod's sake, calm down, alright? I would of done that, if I was someone like Thad..." He answered as he completed the level, pressing the home button on his device, just before looking back at her. "...at least thank me for doing this, seeing, that I can't afford to see someone like you get taken away, only for you to have some... weird sunglasses when I see you again, you know?" Lazarus finished, letting out a sigh while imagining an emotionless Ariel with the shades on her, along with a group of other octolings before he noticed a genuine, relieved smile slowly making its appearance on her.

A thrum was the only thing Ariel could make, wanting to hold the inkling's hand once more out of comfort before Lazarus got off the bed in an instant, holding back a yawn as he stretched his limbs out.  
"Welp, gotta go." He said, much to Ariel's short-lived happiness as she looked at him, confused, wanting to ask something. "Don't wanna make everything too suspicious, 'specially for you." He said, a toothy smile on his grin as he walked out of the bedroom, Ariel understandingly nodding at him before she opened up her laptop once more, only for her to spot Lazarus looking back at her, just as he was about to close the door.

"Hey, before I go..." Ariel looked up at him, curiously so as she began looking through the cameras again. "...you mind, if I came back tonight?" He said, a look of reassurance on his face.

Ariel fell silent, looking surprised at first by the inkling's question before smiling to herself.  
"Y-yeah, sure! I'll... tell Callie and Marie, okay?" She responded, happily so as Lazarus mumbled out an "Alright," before waving at her, saying his goodbye to her as he put on his shoes and headgear as he stepped out of the cabin, closing the door behind him as he did so.

* * *

Ariel watched through the feed as Lazarus stepped outside, just in the nick of time before Hagar and her squadron could be seen landing in front of him, having super jumped towards the outpost. She saw how disappointed his mother was in herself, the two inklings discussing outside about something before Lazarus' brother, presumably Thaddeus came back along with the Squid Sisters and their own, respective squadrons.

Knowing that everyone in Hagar's expedition except for Lazarus had failed in finding her, they were sent back home as Hagar and Lazarus' brother were talking about something before they were headed to the manhole, jumping into it as the inkling boy went over to the Squid Sisters, talking with them for a while that ended with both idols signing something on his set of dualies before he shook their hands, happily jumping into where everyone else went as Ariel saw Callie and Marie heading inside the cabin.

She could soon hear the door opening again.

"Agent 4, stay here for a sec'." Marie's voice could be heard, followed by the mentioned pop star sliding open the wall to where Ariel was.

"Look at that, Ariel! Told you, it'd work!" She grinned as Callie entered the room as well, sitting next to the octarian as Marie took off the clothes she had on during the expedition, leaving her in her squid sister outfit.

"Yeah, I'm... surprised..." Ariel answered awkwardly, knowing that one of the boys had found her while the squid sisters were gone.

"Hey, how'd it feel being here?" Callie asked, moving an arm over Ariel's shoulder as she sighed, accepting the idol's presence.  
She was quiet, trying to come up with an answer before looking at the pair and Agent 4. "I... I was, scared, that they'd find me..." She muttered before Marie let out an assertive humph, tidying up the kimono she was wearing.

"AS IF!" Marie smiled reassuringly, getting up from her bed as Ariel couldn't help, but smile with her and her cousin. "Like I said, there was no way, that they'd find you here! How about we go get ourselves something to eat to celebrate? C'mon!" She motioned Callie and Ariel to follow her, only for the octoling nudged Callie before she got up to follow Marie, the dark-tentacled idol turning to face her.

"Ariel?" She looked at her, the octoling half-smiling to herself as she nervously looked down.

"One of her sons found me..." The octoling whispered, Callie's eyes widening upon hearing this, out of confusion.

"You mean Hagar's? Come on, you're joking... right?" Callie said jokingly, still smiling to herself until she noticed the expression on Ariel that confirmed the truth. "Wait, one of them ACTUALLY found you?!" The squid sister questioned, just loud enough for Ariel to spot Marie looking at them both with a look of shock, having placed some seanwiches on the table along with Agent 4.

"WHAT!?" Marie said in a loud voice, running towards Ariel as Callie realized she had just unknowingly told her cousin what happened. "SOMEONE FOUND YOU!?" The white-tentacled idol said, her face turning slightly green as Ariel blushed a bit out of embarrassment, backing away from the squid sister into the corner of the bedroom.

"Y... Yes...?" She answered shyly, the white-tentacled idol looking shocked before placing her hands in front of her own face, sitting on the bed as she did so.

"Damn it..." She muttered after a sigh came out, tightening her grip on her face, convulsing somewhat as Ariel opened her mouth to speak. "HOW?!" The squid sister shouted abruptly, pulling her hands away as Ariel started to get scared of her.  
"Who found you!? Tell me, this instant!" Marie demanded as she sternly eyed the octoling, who was holding onto a pillow from being scared.

"You're scaring her again, Marie! Cool it, will you?!" Callie intervened as Marie noticed this, her utter disbelief soon disappearing upon realizing how Ariel looked afraid of her. "Also, even IF she had been found, the inkling who found her would of taken her to Hagar without a thought! But she was left here, alone, and okay!" Callie pointed out as her cousin listened intently, another sigh coming out of the squid sister as she laid down on the bed.

"Ugh, I really need to stop getting so heated..." Marie muttered, laying down on the bed as she looked at Ariel, placing a hand over her own head as she felt her head aching.  
"Ariel, who found you? And more importantly... how?" She asked, her face having cooled down in terms of temperature as Ariel expressionlessly looked at the doorway, a smile creeping on her lips.

"Lazarus..." She mumbled, just loud enough for Marie to hear as her face perked up a bit.

"Lazarus? You mean, the boy that happens to be a fan of us?" The pop star asked, slightly confounded, though, still sounding somewhat tense.

The octoling replied with a nod.  
"Yeah, he found me, thanks to someone named Captain Cuttlefish trying to start a call with me. It was so loud, I almost dropped the computer on the floor..." Ariel could see Marie becoming green-faced again, now looking at the ceiling, covering her face with her hands once more.  
"Of course..." Marie uttered, her voice mufled as she let out a groan, realizing, that she had forgotten to lower the volume of her computer. Even if it couldn't of been seen by Ariel or Callie, she became green-faced out of embarrassment.

"Did he tell Hagar about you?" Marie asked worryingly after a moment, Ariel smiling at her question as a few seconds passed by.

"No, he didn't..." The squid sisters acknowledged her answer with a hum, looking at each other with curious expressions, then back at her.

"Are you sure, he's not trying to sweet-talk you, or something?" Marie questioned her choice of an answer, making sure, that whatever Lazarus' intentions wer, they wouldn't be harmful towards Ariel. She provided the same answer to her again, now confident in her tone as Marie became still, staring at the octoling for a moment while Callie listened to the two, interested in the conversation.

Without saying a word, Marie got up with a nod, and went to the living room, rubbing her own forehead as she turned to look at Ariel and Callie, just before exiting the bedroom.

"Alright... well, I'll see you two at the table, then..." She answered, sounding tired as she went over to the table to get herself one of the seanwiches while Callie and Ariel remained together, practically grinning at each other.

"Well, well! Aren't you the lucky one?" Callie broke the silence between them both, a satisfied chuckle emanating from her as she placed a hand over the octoling's shoulder, Ariel letting out a single snicker as well, although, to a lesser extent before looking through Marie's laptop she had taken an interest to.

"I guess so..." The octoling answered, smiling to herself before exiting out of the camera feed, deciding to check out the rest of the features on the mysterious program as she went to the room Agent 4 and Marie were in with Callie following her on the way out.

* * *

 _ **Back in Inkopolis Square...**_

Lazarus popped out of the manhole near Ammo Knights, his family excitedly waiting for him near the Galleria as he noticed most of the inklings that were with them to Octo Canyon have already left the square, most likely having gone home or off to work while the others were getting something to eat near the Crust Bucket.

"'ey, lil' bro! Glad, ya found your way back!" His brother was beaming as he clapped Lazarus on the shoulder, a chuckle coming out of him as he did the same to Thaddeus.

"Yeah, kinda easy, thanks to the ink trail you left me." He proceeded to look at his mother, who had one of her hands in her jacket, smiling at him and his brother.

"I'm glad to see you two so happy! Are you ready to come home, you two?" Their mother asked as Thaddeus answered her question with a joyful: "Yeah!" as he went over to her, beckoning Lazarus to follow him as he stood in his place, his smile becoming a half-smile now.

"I can't... sorry, mom..." He grabbed the questioning expressions of his mother and sibling, both wondering why he was declining their offer, considering he promised them that he'd come with them before they began looking for the octoling.

"Why's that, sweetie?" Hagar asked while Lazarus glanced over to his apartment complex, then looking back at her and Thaddeus.

"I dunno, just feel like getting some rest before my shift at Grizzco begins." He replied, stretching out a limb of his as his mother understandingly let out an 'oh!' sound.

"Doesn't it start later this evening, though?" Thaddeus raised a brow of his, only for him to form that familiar, sly smirk of his that Lazarus knew, hated and despised.

"Thad, NO, I'm not thinking of-"  
"Bro, you're thinkin' about Chloe again, aren't ya?" His smirk grew after his interruption, Lazarus' cheeks blushing as he could hear him chuckling.  
"I'm **NOT** thinking about her, damn it!" Lazarus yelled as he caught the eyes of a few inklings around him and his family, the people around him wondering as to what was going on before Thaddeus let out a laugh.

"Wow, okay, settle down, Laz. You're makin' quite a scene with all of that yellin' of yours." Thaddeus remarked while Lazarus sighed, eventually walking away from him and his mother, but not before turning around to face his brother.

"Says you, who got pushed off a floating island by a little girl!" He shouted back, much to his brother's expression becoming ashamed, and angry at the same time as a crowd began gathering around them. "I'm going home! See ya later, whatever you wanna call it!" Lazarus scowled at him as he walked towards his apartment complex, just before things got out of control as he glanced over his shoulder, noticing his brother reluctantly looking at him as he, and his mother walked back home to her house. Lazarus didn't care what his brother thought of his comment, he just wanted to get some peace and quiet before his shift began.

As he walked down the pavement to his apartment complex, he couldn't help, but wonder if Thaddeus' teasing really was true. That if he really liked Chloe that much as he whipped out his phone, opening up his message application.

Sitting down by a nearby bench, he began texting her as several vehicles drove by.

" _Hey, Chloe, you there?_ " He asked her, waiting for a response from her as a green light popped up next to her name soon after, followed by her writing something to him.

" _Yeah, I am! What's up?_ " Her message said as his attitude recovered a bit.

" _Not much, just visited Octo Canyon today, searched for an octoling with my family, and the Squid Sisters. ;)_ " He replied, hearing the chatter of inklings around him as a team of four passed by him, all looking to have been in a ranked battle together, seeing as how fresh they looked.

" _The Squid Sisters?! :O_ " He smiled at the message once it came up, clearly knowing that she was surprised as he began texting in his next message.

" _Yeah, I got an autograph for helping find that octoling! Pretty cool, huh? :D_ " Lazarus began thinking of Ariel now, wondering how she's faring there with them and Agent 4 before getting another ecstatic message from Chloe.

" _Yeah, that's so cool_ _! Can I see it, please!?~_ " She sent the message with a few emoticons, a chuckle escaping the inkling boy as he got up from his seat.

" _Sure, I'll be at my apartment in a few minutes._ " He replied before turning his phone off, resuming his walk towards the apartment complex, only to hear the sound of Off The Hook's intro theme playing around the square. He, along with the dozens of other inklings looked up at the screen displayed above the Lobby, excited to know what the next stages will be as the opening jingle concluded as an inkling and octoling appeared on screen.

"Y'all know what time it is!" A short-tentacled inkling girl announced with a dark-skinned octoling playing with the discs on her table, the inkling's tentacle color being that of a white color with hints of pink at the end, wearing a crown of the same color as her tentacles along with a sleeveless, white dress with pink tights and boots of the same color as her dress, which had an oversized golden zipper with a star-shaped hole. Lazarus has recognized these two as Pearl and Marina since the day they began their debut in the square, having made quite a name for themselves in Inkopolis Square.

"It's Off the Hook, coming at you LIVE from Inkopolis Square!" The dark-tentacled octoling known as Marina said, her outfit looking more revealing than Pearl's with her whole midriff exposed, wearing a black top sporting a silver zipper on it along with grey shorts and teal-colored tights, as well as black boots.

"Before we get into the stages, we will first be revealing some quick news about our latest campaign!" Pearl declared to her co-hostess, who was experimenting with the discs on her table before looking up at her partner.

"Oh! The one about getting the octarians back into Inkopolis?!" Marina asked, excited as she clenched her hands together.  
"Yeah! About that, Marina..." Pearl's initial, excited tone shifted a bit, turning somewhat nervous.  
"How's that coming along, Pearl? Tell me!" Marina asked as the screen behind them changed, showing several images of themselves protesting in front of the large building where his mother and her accomplices worked at, the organization she was working for known as "The Inkuisition" as Lazarus' eyes widened slightly.

"No effort, I'm afraid..." Pearl groaned, folding her arms as she sneered at the screen. "...the president hasn't said anything about the octarians since he's instated that new policy! Feels like we're being ignored by them more and more..." She sighed, Marina's cheerful, excited expression gradually turning to the opposite spectrum as she slowly looked down, having stopped playing with her device as the song in the background fell quiet.

"Oh..." She said, her face having become despondent. "That's... interesting..." Marina paused, her eyes fading into the darkness of her own tentacles as she remained emotionless, her head hanging low, much to the confusion of her partner.

"Marina? You, um... okay there?" Pearl asked as her expression became worried, having dropped her confident personality as everyone, including Lazarus were just as confused as her, watching the events unfold as Marina let out a sigh, slowly shaking her head to the sides while she tapped her finger on the record player.

"Just... continue, please..." The octoling mumbled out a response as Pearl solemnly nodded, trying her best to announce the following stages in her most confident, cheerful attitude while Marina's face was still obscured by her own tentacles, remaining silent the whole way through.  
The more announcements Pearl made, the more desperate she got, asking her co-hostess to say something witty or smart, including the paid advertisement for Lazarus' workplace as Marina only managed to deliver a weak "Yeah..." or "Okay..." before they would do their usual motto.

Marina just stood there, doing nothing while Pearl did the motto on her own, only to be even more worried by her partner's inactive motion.

"Marina, c'mon, we gotta do the outro together!" She begged before Marina eventually sighed, slowly pushing the table away as she did the motto and pose with Pearl, the tone in her voice remaining quiet, depressed and empty.  
It just didn't feel the same with Marina being like this as Pearl looked affected by all this, her face becoming worried as the screen returned to its flow of commercials as Lazarus could hear the sound of inklings conversing with each other, worried about their idol's personality during the news broadcast while others were heading to where Marina and Pearl were usually chatting with each other to see, what was going on.

He knew something was up with the government his mother was working for. The only problem, was that he couldn't lay a finger on what was exactly wrong, and he didn't want to bring it up to his mother. Was it because of the octarians at Cephalon HQ? Was it because the president hadn't said anything? Or, more importantly: Was it because his mother had kept this all a secret from him and his brother?

Lazarus didn't know, what to do.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Just a quick heads up, I might think of taking a break from writing once I upload the 10th chapter. I haven't been playing Splatoon 2 that much, and interaction with my friends at college have, more-or-less declined a bit as a result.**

 **That's not to say that I still interact with them, though. I still do to my heart's content, and I will still write this story despite all that. I hope you all understand the break I will be having for myself in the next couple of weeks when Chapter 10 is out.**

 **EpsilonProductions, over and out. Stay fresh, everyone!**


	8. Unraveling Threads

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter VIII: Unraveling Threads**_

As Lazarus opened the door to the apartment complex, he couldn't help, but feel, like it was a quieter than usual. Maybe, it was thanks to the lack of inklings inside, or maybe, it was because everyone at the moment were doing turf wars, ranked or league battles, or staying inside their apartments as he went for the stairs, preferring them over the elevator.

"Heya." He said to the jellyfish manning the front desk, to which they responded back with a short wave of acknowledgment before going back to reading their magazine, as if they really didn't care he was there as the inkling began walking up the stairs.

He knew, that Chloe was waiting for him near his apartment door as he turned around a corner. And sure enough, upon reaching the floor his apartment was in, he saw her standing there at the other end of the hallway where his apartment was, looking at her phone.

"HEY, CHLOE!" He yelled out, grabbing the inkling girl's attention as she looked up, an immediate look of excitement spreading on her upon noticing him as she ran over to him.

"Laz!" She stopped in front of him, grinning at her friend as if she met either Marina or Pearl in person.  
"Can I see it?! Can I see the autograph?!" Chloe begged, just as Lazarus was about to open his mouth, eagerly waiting for him to show off his signed dualies as he chuckled a bit at her.  
"Aren't ya gonna ask, how my day went, Chloe?" Lazarus asked her, walking down to his apartment with her. He liked her the most when she was like this.

"Oh, I was gonna do that, until you texted me earlier." She responded, both stopping in front of Lazarus' apartment door as she looked at his dualies. "Can I see it, please?~" She asked, Lazarus letting out a sigh as he pulled out his ID card.

"Chloe, please, let me come home first, alright?" He answered as he inserted the card to the door's slot, the door immediately emanating a clicking noise as Lazarus opened up the door.  
Once the two had entered, he proceeded to take unsheathe his dualies and show them to Chloe, who examined it left and right before stumbling across the names of the Callie and Marie written on his right and left dualie respectively as her eyes widened.

"OH, MY **COD!** " She squealed at the sight of this, covering her mouth as she looked at Lazarus again. "YOU ACTUALLY MET THEM?!" Chloe screamed, ecstatic as Lazarus covered his ears, grunting as his ears ringed.  
"ARGH! Jeez, you're loud!" He retaliated, annoyed at her as she fell silent.  
"Oh... heh, s-sorry, I'm just surprised, that's all..." Chloe laughed nervously to herself, embarrassed as she took off her jacket. "...how'd you get to Octo Canyon, and find the Squid Sisters? I thought, that only the Inkuisition people could get there!" She asked as she jumped onto Lazarus' sofa, laying on it as she grabbed a nearby pillow to rest her head on.

"It's not hard, to be honest." He said, rubbing his ears from Chloe's yelling earlier. "Just enter the manhole near Ammo Knights, go left, find a path that goes straight for a few minutes, then you're there." He answered while pouring himself a glass of juice, placing the carton back in the fridge as he went over to her.

"Aaaaah!" Chloe acknowledged his info, watching Lazarus sitting near her as he took the remote on the coffee table, zapping through channels as he did so.  
"What's Octo Canyon look like, by the way?" She wondered as Lazarus continued what he did before coming across a channel that displayed the more competitive battles he usually watched before his shift at Grizzco started.

"Pretty beautiful place, for sure. Floating islands, rock formations, attractions, and the Squid Sisters live there..." He heard Chloe letting out a subtle whine, still obviously feeling a bit envious of him meeting the pair of idols. "...what more could ya ask for?" He said, beaming at her.

"You gotta show me how to get there!" She answered, sitting up as she did so. "I wanna see Callie and Marie too!" She begged, Lazarus curiously raising a brow of his as she did so.

"I thought you preferred Off the Hook to the Squid Sisters?" He said, taking a sip out of his cup.

"I do! But I still like the Squid Sisters a lot, and it's such a shame, that I didn't get to meet them until Off the Hook became a thing..." Chloe uttered, clearly sounding upset with herself as Lazarus nodded at her.

"Yeah, I know how ya feel..." He said as he and Chloe continued watching the match together.  
Eventually, he turned his head towards her, letting out a sigh after glancing over at her, thinking of her. "Chloe?"

"Yeah?" She responded, looking at him.

"I kinda wanna say something, and... well, I don't really blame you if you'll be shocked by what I say..." He felt himself quiver a bit, the inkling boy letting out a barely audible exhale as Chloe raised an eyebrow of hers, interested as one of the sides of her lips curled upward.

"Have you... seen what happened during that Off the Hook broadcast today?" He finally muttered, Chloe's smile fading as a result, her expression turning into that of confusion.  
" _Damn it, why didn't you ask her out instead?!_ " He thought to himself, feeling stupid for asking that question instead of choosing his golden opportunity.

"No, I haven't...? Is there a Splatfest happening?" She asked, perplexed, and somewhat excited as the inkling boy shook his head at her.  
"Ehhhh... nah." Lazarus answered, scratching the back of his tentacles. "Marina's, uh... kinda upset, that the campaign failed..." Chloe stared, not knowing what he was talking about at first, only to lighten up a bit as she seemed to remember Marina coming up with the idea of a campaign during one of the stage announcements as her expression became curious now as she sat up.

"Really? The one with the octarians?" She questioned, absorbed by bewilderment and curiosity.

"Yeah. Those 'Inkuisition' people my mother's a part of haven't said a word, and that protest to bring the octarians back didn't do that much, from what I heard." Lazarus answered, watching one of the players splatting someone as they took the Rainmaker, swimming towards the other side of the map.

"Oh," Chloe muttered, falling silent as Lazarus excitedly watched the one carrying the Rainmaker avoiding the enemies trying to splat him. "that's a bummer..." She finished, resting her head on the couch's backside as they both watched Judd pull out a flag for the winning team.

Silence hung in the air for the two for a bit, before Lazarus sighed and looked at her, a hint of a smile appearing on his lips.  
"I've actually wanted to ask you something, since..." He said, his voice slightly shaky as Chloe perked up, curious. "...heh, since we first met."

"Yeah?" She responded, tilting her head slightly.

"Do you..." He felt his body tensing up a bit, looking at Chloe as he waited to blurt out his question. "...feel like hangin' out with me after work?" He asked, blushing slightly as he noticed the inkling girl's expression turning into that of surprise.

"What kind of question is that?!" She said, sounding ecstatic and happy as Lazarus remained quiet. "Of course, I want to!" She replied, a toothy grin appearing on her.  
" _Wait, that worked...?!_ " Lazarus chuckled to himself, surprised, that Chloe was so quick to accept his offer as he saw her inching her way towards him, practically sitting next to him now. Once his arm came in contact with her, he felt his body tingling a bit as he looked at her in the eyes. "Okay, cool! Um... where do you wanna go after our shift?" He asked, waiting for an answer.  
"I wanna go to Octo Canyon!" She was beaming like a star, Lazarus smiling to himself as his sub-conscious sighed.  
" _Of course..._ " He thought, imagining her fangirling in front of the Squid Sisters before a jolly smirk came on him, deciding to have a little bit of fun with Chloe.

"Is there a reason for that?" He asked her, already knowing why she wanted to go there.  
"I wanna meet Callie and Marie, and get their autographs, duh!" She replied, just before noticing the smirk on his face, as if he knew her answer from the get-go. "Come on, they're just as good as Off the Hook! Stop!" She said, grinning as she playfully pushed Lazarus onto his back on the sofa, laughing along with him as they continued watching the ranked battles play out on Lazarus' television.

"Hey, you want anything before work, Chlo?" He asked her, Chloe smiling at his question.  
"Yeah, sure!" She reponded as he passed her the remote, allowing her to choose her favorite channel before he got up from his sofa, heading over to the fridge to get himself and Chloe something to eat and drink before their shift at Grizzco began.

* * *

 _ **Several hours later...**_

As the clock struck 5:30 PM, Lazarus' alarm suddenly went off, much to Chloe's initial confusion, who was busy eating a sandwich she had gotten from the refrigerator as the male inkling pulled out his phone after pausing the movie they both were watching, just before it came to a fight scene involving two brothers.

"Right, guess it's time for work." Lazarus commented as he got up from his sofa, heading over to the front door where his and Chloe's external clothing was.

"Already?! C'mon, we were just getting to the good part!" The inkling girl whined as Lazarus was putting on his shoes, tying them in the process.

"We can watch the rest of it when we come back, you know." Lazarus responded as he put on his parashooter next, placing the straps together. "Let's go, come on!" Lazarus beckoned, grabbing a nearby hiking pack laying around as Chloe rolled her eyes before going over to him, having turned the television off.

"Fine..." She grumbled as she put on her green hi-tops and coat, both proceeding to head out of the apartment as the inkling girl eyed the inkling boy's backpack.

"Hey, Laz?" She said, grabbing his attention.  
"Yeah?" He looked at her as they both walked towards the stairwell and elevator, passing by some of their neighboring apartments.  
"What's with the backpack?" She questioned while giving it a good poke, wondering why Lazarus would have something like that with him to Grizzco.  
"We're going to Octo Canyon after work, remember?" He answered, a slight smirk on his face. "Thought, that I could pack some snacks we could take." He explained as they reached the stairwell housing the elevator and, of course, the stairs.

"Oh! That's actually really smart!" Chloe answered back, both inklings now wondering which path they should take before settling on using the elevator as they entered it, beginning their descent to the lobby with the good push of a button.

Upon reaching their destined floor, Lazarus saw, that compared to when he came in, there were a few more inklings now, and there was still talk about what happened with Marina and Pearl during the news broadcast as Chloe looked around, somewhat worried by all of this.

"Seems like you were right..." She uttered, walking along with Lazarus as they made their way to the front door.

"You didn't believe me?" He asked as he pulled open the doors to the outside world, Chloe letting out a sigh as she followed him on the way out.  
"I did! I was just kind of skeptical that it wasn't true, though..." Lazarus hummed, understanding her answer as they continued their walk towards the Grizzco building, continuously hearing chatter of Marina's strange, unusual behavior today on their way to the Square.

Suddenly, a thought crossed Lazarus' mind from all this talk, and his encounter with Ariel today.  
Of course, Lazarus knew, that if he had the chance of getting the octarians back into Inkopolis, it wasn't going to easy when the government itself supported the idea of keeping them out along with their head running the Inkuisition operations as well, as his mother told him once. What struck him as odd, though, was that Marina, an octoling was allowed in Inkopolis despite the circumstances of the new law created to keep the octarians out.

It made very little sense to him, unless there was something he was missing, or something that his mother and the Inkuisition wouldn't reveal to him or everyone else.

His theorizing came to a halt when they arrived to the Square, both Lazarus and Chloe noticing, that the window where Pearl and her partner usually were seen talking with each other was blocked off from everyone's view by a curtain, the building in question looking completely dark as inklings surrounded it, talking amongst themselves about what was going on.

"What's...?" Chloe muttered, before her expression perked upon remembering Lazarus' explanation earlier today.  
"Told you. Seems like everyone's worried about her..." Lazarus spoke, his voice sounding hushed as Chloe stared at the crowd gathered outside, just before spotting Lily waiting for them outside Grizzco Industries, looking at her phone. Their attention remained on the closed-off window until they were near the manhole Lazarus jumped through this morning.

"Hey, Lily!" Chloe announced their presence as she ran up to her, Lily looking up from her device as a smile appeared on her.

"Oh, Chloe! And Lazarus..." Lily muttered his name out timidly, her expression into a half-smile now at him being around her. She had never been comfortable with him or Thaddeus, seeing how his brother would often tease her for continuously getting splatted by the salmonids, and using tactics that only a coward would use, costing them their pay grades sometimes.

"'sup, Lil? How's your day been?" He asked her as he took out his phone, noticing it was now 5:40 PM, 20 minutes before their shift began.

"Not much! Me and Chloe have been walking around the square today, looking for some clothes in the Galleria, playing Squid Beats... and Turf Wars... I was just here, waiting for you two and Thad to come..." Lily answered as she sat onto the ground once more, messing around on her phone as the pair of inklings in front of her faced towards the square, keeping an eye out for Lazarus' brother in case he showed up while also looking at the building where Pearl and Marina would usually discuss out of curiosity.

"Hm, cool... Did you find anything fresh in the Galleria?" Lazarus asked as he eyed the Crust Bucket, feeling a bit hungry for something delicious.

"Just some 2-star gear I'm not interested in..." Lily answered, uninterested before noticing him eyeing the yellow trailer parked near the tables, looking thoughtful about something before he snapped his head towards her and Chloe.

"Hey, I'm gonna grab myself a quick snack. You two need anything?" He asked, Chloe politely declining his offer while Lily felt a bit hungry, asking for a delicious seanwich along with a Special-Up Smoothie. A smile spread on the inkling boy's lips.

"Alright, be back in a sec, Lil." Lazarus said before scurrying his way towards the trailer, Lily watching him as he ordered what she wanted along with getting something for himself before coming back a few minutes later, holding a seanwich and a cup displaying an icon of a tenta missile special in his hand.  
"Here ya go, fresh off the grill." He smiled as he handed the delicacies to her, Lily happily grabbing, and taking a bite out of her meal.

"Mph! Thanks, Laz!" She said, her mouth filled with the seanwich as she sipped the contents from the cup with the straw attached to it.

* * *

Minutes passed by, and Thaddeus still hadn't shown up, much to everyone's confusion as Lazarus let folded his arms, tapping the ground below him.

" _Where the heck is he?_ " Lazarus asked himself as Chloe kept looking out for Thaddeus while Lily finished her meal, wiping off the crumpets around her lips before taking one more drink out of the can before it was empty.  
As Lily tossed the cup into a nearby garbage bin, they saw two pairs of inklings stepping out of the Grizzco building, one girl and three boys, all looking refreshed, possibly having showered themselves after their shift. They were all heading to window where the bonuses were given out, laughing as the three of them heard them bragging to each other about how good they were at their job, collecting about a hundred eggs or so as they grabbed the gachapons they got.

Lazarus remained silent, having told himself to follow the company policy the best he could, and respecting the other co-workers around him as he folded his arms, getting irritated by Thaddeus not showing up along with him feeling inferior to the group of inklings that walked away.  
Eventually, though...  
" _That's it..._ " He thought to himself before taking out his phone, immediately opening up the messages application as he began texting his brother.

" _Thad_ _, where the heck are you? You're gonna be late for work!_ " He sent the message to him as he looked back up. Still no signs of him before he saw the time on his clock hit 6 P.M.

It was time for his, and the girls' shift to start.

With a sigh, he closed the phone and began walking into the building, motioning Chloe and Lily to follow him. Though, just as he and the girls stepped inside, he received a message from his brother, and was immediately met with questions he wanted to ask himself regarding their falling out earlier.

" _leave me alone laz._ " It said, all in lower-case letters.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, in Octo Canyon...**_

Ariel was looking through the reports she had previously found on the program, her curiosity continuing to grow the more she read through each report of the captives while glancing over at Agent 4 playing on her phone.

"Ariel?" Callie said as she approached her, snapping the octoling's attention away from the computer screen.

"Yeah?" She stopped upon noticing Callie placing a plate of food on the table in front of her, along with some chopsticks and a soda can with a color of purple.

"Here, I thought you needed this." The squid sister said as Ariel grabbed the can, confused on how to open it before eventually figuring it out, a satisfied "Hm!" coming out of the octarian as she popped it open.

"Thanks." Ariel said, half-smiling at Callie before taking a careful sip of the contents inside. It was sweet, yet sparkly with the taste of blueberry as she licked her lips before placing it back down on the plate, noticing Callie smiling at her as she stretched herself out while Ariel continued searching through the contents within the files.

"So, what are ya up to?" Callie asked, wondering what Ariel has been doing for the past hour or so as she stood next to her, looking at the screen of her cousin's laptop.

"Just looking through these reports..." She answered as she viewed another report, a curious purr escaping Callie as she read the text along with her.  
"Can I see?" She asked as she analyzed what Ariel was reading, Ariel shrugging her shoulders as she glanced at her.

"Sure, why not?" Ariel answered as she pressed an arrow to show the next captive. Each report she read seemed to follow a pattern: It started off by showing every octarian that was captured their names, their age, gender, biography, date of birth, date of capture, and other miscellaneous details telling why they were captured, whether that be running away, causing a riot or commotion in Cephalon HQ, physical violence, and many other reasons that Ariel noted along with a picture of them and their captor's name and profile. The more reports she skimmed through, the more the octarian or octolings she recognized, though, not to a point where she would feel emotionally distraught, but more so wondering why they would be captured in the first place.

Except for one.  
Her sister, Dinah.

When Ariel came across the report detailing her, she felt the world around her stop completely, her jaw dropping slightly along with her eyes widening in shock. It detailed everything she knew about her, her secrets and biography, as well information only Dinah knew of that even Ariel's never heard of before.

A memory inside of her was triggered, just before she could analyze the report any further.

* * *

 **Several weeks ago...**

 _ **"** Hey, what do you think you're doing?" **Ariel's eyes snapped open, having fallen asleep on the job after another, exhausting day of work at Cephalon HQ.  
"**Get back to work this instant. **" One of Ariel's superiors commanded her, her voice emotionless as she aimed a device created to subdue anyone that tried to defy one of their orders.**_

 _ **"** W-wait, what? What did I do?! I was-! **" Ariel wanted to complain, only to be cut short as the elite walked up to her, the light on her shades turning an orange color.**_

 _ **"** Resting during work is not tolerated under any circumstances here, Ariel Eightan. You will go back to work, or I will be taking necessary action to force you to. **" Her supervisor told her, readying the device for any sudden movement Ariel might make against her. Ariel was confused, and more importantly, scared that one of her own people was aiming a gun right at her face as she complied to her officer's demands, trying to apologize before she was interrupted once more.**_

 _ **"** Hey, leave my sister alone! **" Dinah called out from nearby, jumping in front of her as the brainwashed octoling stepped back, unaffected at her sister's sudden movement.**_

 _ **"** Dinah, step aside at once, and allow me to handle this. **" The octoling spoke, gently shoving her sister aside as Dinah humphed, running, and spreading her arms out in front of Ariel.**_

 _ **"** I won't! **"** **Her sister yelled, taking a step towards her officer.  
** **"** Ariel deserves way better than this, especially since you and your crooks have been harassing her and me all day! And for what?! JUST FOR TAKINGA BREAK?! **" Dinah said, frustrated as she prompted the octoling in front of her to take another step backward before taking out a radio of some kind, opening her mouth.**_

 _ **"** Requesting immediate backup here near the- **"**_  
 _ **"** Don't you DARE call your friends here! **"** **She slapped the device away, the light on her boss' sunglasses turning a blood red color as she looked at Ariel and Dinah, gritting her teeth before whipping out a roller.**_

 _ **"** STAND DOWN AT ONCE, DINAH. **" Her supervisor said, her voice now commanding and threatening as an alarm began going off, Dinah quickly delivering a swift punch to the octoling's face before she could react, her hypnoshades cracking in the process as a group of elite octolings arrived to the scene, surrounding her and Ariel as the latter was pushed away from the fight.**_

 _ **"** Target acquired, locking on... **" One of the octolings robotically muttered as they began aimed their shot, Dinah taking a stand for herself as she kicked away another octoling that tried neutralizing her, turning her head towards another that was approaching her as Ariel helplessly watched from outside the ring of octolings surrounding her sister. "**...Fire. **"**_

 _ **"** Wha- **" Dinah barely managed to blurt out before she was shocked by the device one of her brethren were holding onto, painfully screaming in the process as she fell onto the ground, twitching involuntarily as Ariel's eyes widened.**_

 _ **"** DINAH! **" Ariel screamed as she tried to run past the elite octolings, only to blocked off by the numerous amounts of them as she went to find some higher ground for a better view of what was going on.**_

 _" NO! LET ME GO, YOU... YOU FREAKS! ARIEL, HELP!" **She screamed profusely, trying to fight back despite the paralysis she was suffering through as one of the Inkuisition members nearby saw the commotion, the inkling in question wearing a helmet that concealed their face along with some metallic armor and boots showing an Inkuisition logo on the chest, as well as a device of some kind on the mouth area that provided ink and air for the one inside the armor.**_

 _ **"** What the actual heck is going on here? **" They asked, confused by the whole thing. Their voice masked by the helmet on them creating two voices into one as the octolings turned to look at the inkling, presenting Dinah to them as she was pushed onto the floor. Judging by the voice, she assumed they were were around their late teens or so as she continued watching.**_

 _ **Just as Dinah was about to explain her problems after looking up at the one before her, the octolings covered her mouth, much to her anger.**_

 _ **"** Master... **" The inkling's name was muffled, too quiet for Ariel to hear as one of the supervisors continued while Dinah was letting out muffled screams, trying to bite the one keeping her silent.  
"**We found this octoling committing physical violence against one of our own, and refusing to listen to her commands. Under your following orders, we are to take her away for immediate counselling, courtesy of... **" Another name too hard for her to make out once more. Try as she might to remember what they were trying to say, she just couldn't make out the name of all things.**_

 _ **"** LIAR! I WAS ONLY PROTECTING MY SISTER, GET AWAY FROM ME! **"** **Her sister yelled, trying to push away the elites holding her, worryingly looking at the armored inkling standing in front of her.** "I-I'm so sorry for attacking my supervisor! I'll do anything to help, just please, don't- **" Dinah begged, tears streaming from her eyes before being shocked once more from behind, screaming in agony as the inkling wearing the armor just stared at her, doing nothing to help her.**_

 _ **What was worse, Ariel could swear, she heard them let out a slight chuckle at her screams until she fell unconscious, not moving one bit aside from a few twitches.**_

 _ **"** Thank you, sweetheart... **" The inkling said underneath their mask, holding her sister in his arms.  
"**I'll take 'er away, an' send a report to Marie of the Squid Sisters along with our head of security. She'll be back up, an' running in proper shape by tomorrow. **" The masked inkling said condescendingly, the octolings robotically saluting them as it took Dinah away while the elites went about their business, as if the whole thing never happened.**_

 _ **That was the last time she ever saw her sister, before she had those shades put on her.**_

* * *

Ariel began sniffling as she tried repressing the memory, much to the confusion of Callie and Agent 4 as she shakily closed the laptop, the squid sister sitting next to her knowing, that she's about to have another breakdown upon seeing one of her hands turning into fists.

"Marie!" Callie called for her cousin, who looked at her before noticing Ariel's expression.

"Ariel?!" Marie went over, kneeling next to her before the octoling buried herself face-first on a pillow, letting out a muffled scream. Her incomprehensible yells were the only thing Ariel could let out as anger and trauma clouded her mind along with her sobs as she gripped onto the cushion she held in front of her face, muttering out something unintelligble for the inklings around her.  
While Callie was taking care of Ariel, Marie picked up the laptop next to her, typing in the password, and allowing herself and her cousin to see what made Ariel act like this.

They saw a picture of a dark-tentacled octoling with green kelps on them, looking at the camera, horrified of something as they read through the details of the report together. The captive had caused physical violence towards her officers, making threats and rebelling against the Inkuisition behind their backs, refusing to follow orders, and defending someone who supports the rebellion before she was taken away to be 'put in her place'.  
Their capturer's name was unknown, as it was censored out by a black marker, which caused Marie to raise an eyebrow as questions filled her head, since no other report had censored a captive's capturer's name before.

What they did know about the one who caught Dinah, though, was that there was a picture of them.  
An inkling wearing a full power armor set with royal blue lights along with what looked to be a modified Krak-On Roller attached to their back, their face completely obscured by the helmet with no signs of tentacles as the rest of their body was covered by the leggings, chestpiece and boots.

She just stared at the picture, not knowing what to say as Agent 4 looked at it, wondering who it could be in the photo.

"Marie? Who is that...?" Callie asked upon moving her eyes to her cousin, Marie remaining silent as she continued staring, trying her hardest to decipher any facial features she could find behind the helmet.

"I... don't know..." She paused, swallowing a lump in her throat as she felt a wave of fear come over her. "...but it scares me, for some reason..." The squid sister said as she suddenly shivered, looking at Ariel as she noticed how quiet she had become.

"Ariel?" Callie murmured as she placed a hand over her tentacles, caressing it as Ariel's body trembled before the octoling looked back at the computer Marie held on her lap.  
Her face was full of fear as she stared directly at the picture. Not at the one of her sister, but the picture displaying her sister's kidnapper, and potential brainwasher.

Whatever monster was underneath that helmet, must of been smiling when they had their picture taken, and had the honor of putting those hypnoshades on the one she once loved as a sister. She couldn't help, but feel rage and despair build up in her as she clutched the pillow she held onto.

"I'm sorry, Dinah..." Ariel mumbled, staring at the photo of her sister before burying herself back in her pillow, continuing to sob quietly as she imagined Dinah's capturer laughing at her while the pair of idols and inkling girl were comforting her the best they could.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well then! The amount of reviews I've been getting these past few days is surprising, to say the very least. Thank you all so very much for 2000 views!**

 **I've also got some good news, that being, that I now have my well-deserved autumn break! Which is going to last for a whole week before college begins once more. By the time we get to maybe Chapter 10, it will already be over. That being said, though, I would like to say something regarding my break I promised last chapter.**

 **I have decided, that once I finish Chapter 10, I am going to go back to the previous 10 chapters, and update them to my story's current standards, and finding any plotholes that will be fixed before I take a break from this story. That means editing them, updating some necessary dialogue and details for this story, as well as fixing any mistakes or repeated words I might come across.**

 **Again, thank you for over 2000 views and the small influx of reviews I got! It has motivated me to continue this story until I see it to the end! I'll see you all in the next chapter very soon!**


	9. Blind Passenger

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter IX: Blind Passenger**_

"Ech, I forgot how much this place stinks!" Lily commented, wincing at the smell inside the building while Lazarus and Chloe had somewhat of the same reaction, although to a lesser extent. The three of them were waiting for their boss' voice to come on the radio, looking at the various power eggs mixed with golden eggs sitting on the net along with the camera footage displaying the docks and various locations of the salmon runs, as well as some of the other workers that were done with their shift coming out of the changing rooms, having taken showers judging by their fresh looks.

" **'ey, right on time, ya three!** " The voice of their boss came on all of a sudden, turning their attention towards the bear statue standing on the crate nearby. " **I was just busy tallyin' all of these golden eggs 'ere, and...** " His voice fell quiet, the trio of inklings waiting for what he wanted to say before it came back.  
" **Wait a sec... only three? Lazarus, where's your brother?!** " He asked, confused as the inkling knew that Thad wasn't going to be with him and the girls this time around. With a sigh, Lazarus stepped forward.

"Thad's... not coming, sir..." He looked down, away from the bear statue.

" **And why's that?** " His boss asked on the radio, his voice stern, and questioning as the girls remained quiet.

"Well, to put it simply, he's kinda pissed, that we didn't find that octoling today. That, and he was pushed off a ledge by a girl from the Squidbeak Splatoon, got splatted and laughed at..." He folded his arms, a small smirk appearing on his lips at what he saw today as both Chloe and Lily looked at him, wide-eyed with poker faces. Silence hung in the air around everyone, aside from the sound of inklings conversing with each other before Mr. Grizz broke it between him and Lazarus.

" **You're kiddin' me, right** **?** " He asked in an irritated tone, as if he didn't believe Lazarus' explanation whatsoever.  
"I'm serious! Thad got pushed off by this "Agent 4" girl today, just before we began looking for the octoling!" Lazarus hastily replied, his boss' response being that of silence, followed by a thoughtful purr as Chloe walked up to him.

"Wait, you mean, that-"  
"Before you ask, no, he not dead." Lazarus interrupted Chloe, who was about to ask him that. "You can thank the squid sisters, that there was a respawn pad. Otherwise, I'd have to cancel my shift today in favor for a funeral." He finished, still having the serious expression on him as he and the girls heard Mr. Grizz letting out an exhale on the radio, Lazarus looking at his phone again for any new messages from his brother. Nothing new.

" **I see... 'right, then...** " Mr. Grizz mumbled, the trio of inklings waiting for him to continue. " **...** **Just** **thought, that he would be comin' 'ere today, seein' as he usually leaves messages for me when he's ill, or in a bad mood. Quite a shame he ain't, really.** " He commented, sounding upset as Lazarus hummed understandingly at how he felt.

"Yeah, I know. Tried texting him before we all came in, and all I got, was this..." He showed the statue his telephone, as well as the message his brother sent him. A grunt escaped from Mr. Grizz' voice, presumably from reading it.

" **Well, that's rather unorthodox of 'im. Seems like I'm gonna need ta hire a freelancer for y'all today in Thaddeus' place, how 'bout it?** " Mr. Grizz asked, the girls having no problem with it while Lazarus looked as though he didn't want to, but had no other choice if his brother wasn't coming to work today. After thinking about the offer for a while, as well as being asked by his boss if he was okay, he reached a conclusion.

"I'm fine with it. As long as they aren't a jerk, or anything..." Lazarus commented, looking around as he saw another batch of inklings in their work outfits coming back from a salmon run of their own.

" **Alright, then it's settled! Get changed at once, and I'll see, if anyone's willin' ta help y'all out.** " Mr. Grizz ordered as the girls and Lazarus went over to the changing rooms, only for Lazarus to stop in his tracks. " **Except for you,** **Lazarus. I want to have a little talk with you, if you wouldn't mind.** " He said, the inkling boy turning around, facing the bear statue as the girls went inside the females only room together.

"Okay...? What's up, boss?" Lazarus asked, walking towards the device his CEO was talking from as he pulled out a chair to sit on, staring at the radio.

" **I want to have a lil' talk about your brother's recent behavior, considerin' he's family to you and all that.** " The inkling perked up an eyebrow, hearing his superior's voice having become calm, yet, worried. It was unusual for Mr. Grizz to be this calm, the last time he ever heard him sounding like this, was when he first came to Grizzco Industries as an intern out of curiosity, thanks to all the talk about the 'shady' job he now currently has.

"What about him?" Lazarus asked, wondering what his boss meant by as the sound of a lighter could be heard being flicked on.  
" **Call me paranoid or somethin',** **but Thaddeus has been** **acting...** " An exhale came out of the radio, as though his boss was smoking a cigarette. " **...let's just say, strange, in my eyes recently.** " Mr. Grizz went quiet, Lazarus' expression turning into that of puzzlement as a group of inklings walked past him back out to Inkopolis Square, looking to have finished their shift for the day.

"What do you mean 'strange'?" The inkling boy questioned, clasping his hands together as he did so.

" **I can't really explain it,** **but...** " His boss choked for a moment, before continuing. " **...** **since this new policy made by those "Inkuisition" folk was created, he's become more condescendin', and has begun berating other workers he's freelanced with for failing their quota, compared to his more helpful attitude when ya first brought 'im 'ere. It's honestly makin' the other workers that he's paired up with feel uncomfortable 'round him, 'specially how he doesn't get revived that often anymore by his co-workers I pair 'im up with.** " He paused for a second after his elaboration, catching his breath as he continued.

" **Lazarus, I need to know, if he's ever acted like this before you came here. Please, tell me...** " His boss implored him, sounding sincere as the inkling boy reflected on what he said, looking at the ground below him.  
He realized, that Mr. Grizz wasn't too far off with his assumption.

He and his brother have always had a healthy relationship together before he had fully developed his humanoid form, playing games together on their television and electronics, dubbing comics together that they read, supporting each other and their family, especially during splatfests that Thaddeus attended to when Callie and Marie were the popular ones back in his day. He would often watch him mercilessly destroy entire teams with his kraken form and roller, as well as taking the win for his team, whether or not Marie won or lost.

Then, when Lazarus had fully developed his humanoid form when he became 14 himself, Thaddeus changed somewhat. He began teasing him a little until he was pressured enough to begin getting into turf wars out of his brother's request, then ranked battles once he had reached level 10, reaching all the way up to B+ before quitting ranked battles entirely due to the competitive nature for him being too much to handle.  
His brother was still helpful and supportive of him despite his decision, but he had noticed, that Thaddeus had begun treating him less of a brother, and more of an open target, considering his arrogant, boastful personality to the girls in a vain attempt to get them to go out with him, simply because of a dumb stereotype that all inklings that are an S rank get all the things they could ever dream of, and his brother was no exception to this generalized rule of anyone that is below A- gets nothing.

And it became worse, when the new law regarding the banning of octarians was made. He and his brother would now argue with each other, Thaddeus demanding a duel to humiliate him sometimes in public, which he had always declined, considering his brother outclassed him in each, and every category.  
Lazarus knew, that his boss wasn't too far off from the truth, and Thaddeus' recent behavior towards him, Agent 4 and the other Grizzco workers was the main evidence to back this all up as he looked at the statue before him, a sad half-smile appearing on him.

"You actually don't seem too wrong about that, you know..." He mumbled, earning the curious hum of his employer as his smile faded away. "Thad's been kind of a jerk since that "octarians getting banned" thing was created." Lazarus responded, tapping his foot as Mr. Grizz let out a gruff hum.

" **Hrmph, thank you for telling me this, kid... I'll have a talk with your brother when he comes here next time,** **alright?** " Lazarus nodded at Mr. Grizz's statement, a wave of relief coming over him as he stared at the statue.  
"Alright, I guess..." He muttered as both he and his boss remained quiet to each other for some seconds, before the latter spoke up.  
" **W** **ell? L** **et's not dwell too much on that for now, and get to work instead, shall we?"** The inkling boy sighed at his boss' newly-regained confidence, trying his best to ignore his brother's strange behavior before getting up from his seat, noticing the last batch of inkling boys stepping out of the changing rooms he was supposed to be in now. " **Get changed at once, and I'll meet ya and the girls near the docks. Your ink color for this shift will be orange, ya got it?** "

"Got it, boss." He answered, heading to where he was instructed to go to before closing the door behind him.

* * *

Having changed his ink color and put on his outfit, Lazarus stepped out of the door, ready for action as he saw the girls waiting for him along with their freelancer, all three of them sporting the same ink color as him.  
"Hey, you all ready for some action?" He asked, repositioning the cap on him as he walked over to them.

"Yeah, we are!" Chloe answered, confidently smiling at him. "Oh, we also just met the freelancer that's gonna help us today! Her name's Ariel, and..." She moved out of the way, Lazarus' self-assured expression disappearing upon noticing their freelancer while Chloe's voice seemingly faded away. The freelancer looked to be an inkling girl with short, yellow tentacles, red, crimson eyes with fair skin and...

" _Wait, that can't be..._ " Lazarus remembered the details of Agent 4, who had the same form and appearance as the freelancer as they looked at him, obviously hiding something from him as they looked away the second their eyes met. He kept staring at her, not hearing any of Chloe's words before she waved a hand in front of him, looking confused.

"Laz, you okay there?" She asked, snapping Lazarus out of his thoughts as he shook his head.  
"S-sorry, I... Heh, I just kinda remember that girl from somewhere, that's all..." He apologized to her as he saw the freelancer drawing something on a notepad she was holding, leaning against a wall as Lazarus placed a hand of his onto his temple. He knew, that this had to be the same girl he met at Octo Canyon earlier today.  
"Really? From where?" Chloe asked while they were heading to the docks, the door segregating the Grizzco building and the shipyard opening soon enough as they were treated to the outside world once more, the sun beginning to set in the horizon once they stepped out of the building.  
"Can't really remember, to be honest. Maybe from turf wars, or something?" Lazarus shrugged his shoulders, obviously making his answer up before hearing his boss' voice crackling on his headset.

"' **right, you four know what to** **do!** " Mr. Grizz said, his voice riddled somewhat with static as Lazarus and the girls began heading to the various boats that their other co-workers were on, waving at them as he and the girls waved back to the others. " **You lot will be assigned to the boat labelled SG-08-30-N.** **Make sure, that you all get some proper rest and energy until you get to your destination!** " Their boss announced as they did what he told them to do, walking onto the ship as Lazarus didn't take his eyes off the freelancer even one bit. She looked so similar to Agent 4... Too similar, in fact, as he noticed her subtlety glance over at him before looking away again.

" **I also managed to get a freelancer for y'all, as promised. Her name's Ariel, and she happens to be a profreshional that doesn't talk a whole lot. Prefers to talk through a notepad, etcetera etcetera, you get the drill, right? So treat 'er with good respect for willin' ta help ya!** " He confirmed it for Lazarus at this point. This WAS Agent 4, and he assumed, that she was either sent by Callie or Marie to keep an eye out on him in case he tried to give away Ariel's position to anyone else. They had to of known about Ariel before he even met her earlier today, considering how the octoling was hidden inside the cabin, and not anywhere else.  
Once they all got on board, the horn blared along with the other boats around them, signalling their departure as the ride to the Spawning Grounds began. He was now basically stuck with someone that knew of the octoling he met today, trying his best to assess the predicament he was in by sitting down on one of the benches on the stern while Chloe and Lily went over to the inkling girl, discussing with her about their levels and ranks as Agent 4 pulled out her familiar notepad, and began wring on it as a response to them.

What it said, he had no idea. Though, he could imagine, that she was giving her details to them with the exception of her name, which was most likely a fake.

"Oh, you're a B rank, and level 19?" He looked at the trio of girls as Lily asked Agent 4 that question, noticing that the girls weren't really paying attention to him that much as the short-tentacled girl nodded at her, before writing something else until she handed over the note to her and Chloe to look at.

"Th-that's cool, I guess! We, um... don't really have any ranks, aside from C and C-... Except for Lazarus over there, who is B+ in everything else, thanks to his brother!" She said, her voice perking up a notch as Lazarus' expression livened up from this, noticing them looking at him as he gave a single wave to the three, trying to play it off as it was his first time meeting Agent 4.

"'ey, wassup?" He got up, walking over to the trio of girls before tripping forward from the boat's movement, letting out a short yelp from falling over as Agent 4 grinned at him, before letting out a snicker as Chloe and Lily made room for him and her. Lazarus grunted, blushing somewhat out of embarrassment before standing up again, looking at her as Agent 4 still had her smile on her.

Though, something felt a little bit off about it, as if she knew he was pretending for her sake before writing on her notepad and showing her answer to him afterward.

"Nothing, really. Just felt like making a quick buck, that's all! You okay, by the way?" She tilted her head as the girls sat down to avoid falling over like Lazarus did, as well as to avoid getting sea sickness.

"Yeah, don't worry about it. Happens to me all the time..." Lazarus reassured, moving one of his hands over the knee that hurt while moving the other to the back of his head. "Anyways, what's up? Been helping any inklings today with freelancing?" He asked her, who was drawing a humanoid figure with a roller before she slipped in a response to him.

"I've just begun my shift for the evening! I think, you three did the same?" She answered through the paper, the girls acknowledging her question with some "Yeah"s while Lazarus let out a simple "Yup" as he, Chloe and Lily continued conversing with each other, sharing a few laughs with each other while Agent 4 kept drawing until she got up to her feet all of sudden, the inkling boy and the girls spotting her motioning them with a hand of hers after reaching the other side of the boat.  
"One moment, stay here, you two." He said as the freelancer disappeared behind the bow, much to the mystification for the girls as he turned to look at them both.

"Okay...?" Chloe jittered, confused by Lazarus' and Ariel's interactions with each other as the former turned towards the deck of the ship leading to the bow.

"Actually, come if you want, but I kinda wanna talk with this girl in private, okay?" He reassured them, Chloe understandingly nodding at him while Lily eyed him following where the freelancer wanted him to go, before he disappeared behind the wall where the bow was as well.

Lazarus noticed their destination slowly coming up on the horizon along with the short-tentacled inkling girl looking at it, the sky above them having turned into a beautiful, evening color along with the sun about to set in the distance.  
With a sigh, he walked up to her, his expression turning serious as he did so.

"Alright, cut the act, 4. What're you doing here, and what do you want?" He dropped his act, his tone becoming questioning as she slowly turned her head toward him, proceeding to write something on her notepad after a quiet stare, which took longer than expected for her before she showed him what was written on it.

"I wanna know, if you've told anyone about Ariel. Have you told your family, Off the Hook, Chloe, Lily, or anyone? Please, tell me, that you haven't." She looked more stern, as well as worried than usual, her red-colored eyes not helping Lazarus calm down in the slightest as he stared at the paper, taking in all the words before looking back at her.

"You kinda told Chloe and Lily about yourself already, though..." He tried making the conversation more lighthearted, a half-smile appearing on his face while Agent 4 was unamused at his attempt at humor as looked away from him, the ocean around them started to gradually turn into a dark green color the closer they got to their location.

"Jeez, I was just trying to be funny, okay?!" He said, hasty in his tone as Agent 4 seemed to ignore him.  
"Like, I was going to say no, because I promised, that I wouldn't tell anyone about her! There, you happy?" He sat down, Agent 4 letting out a humph at his answer as she leaned back onto a nearby wall of the boat, looking out to the distant Spawning Grounds.

"I wanted to ask you something else, too." Lazarus caught her attention somewhat, the agent turning her head sideways, an eyebrow of hers going up as she listened. "Why ARE you here, and what do you want, aside from wanting to know if I've told anyone about Ariel?" She didn't answer him, didn't even bother to pull out her notepad as she went back to staring out to the polluted sea before her.

"None of my business, I see. Guess it's only for secret agents like you, I suppose..." He mumbled, to which she replied with more silence before eventually writing an answer to him. Again, it took a while, before she finished.

"If you really wanna know, I was sent by Marie to keep an eye on you after Ariel had another breakdown, along with getting some tickets for the crust bucket, since we're running low on those." Lazarus saw Agent 4 placing two of her fingers on the side of her head, looking away from him as he threw the paper into a bin after reading through it.

"So you just happened to spot me and the girls outside Grizzco, and followed us?" Despite facing the other direction, Lazarus could see Agent 4 nodding at his question as she threw another piece of ruffled-up paper to him, now facing him with a blank, albeit tired tired look.

"Yeah, just to make sure, that you didn't tell any of your friends about her." She resumed staring out to the island they were heading to, most likely since she had nothing else to do until everyone's shift started.

"But why? It's not like Chloe or Lily would know where she is!" The male inkling commented, gripping onto the rails of the ship they were on before she wrote him one more note that made him freeze in his place.

"You wanted to go out on a date with Chloe to Octo Canyon tonight, remember?" He stared at the message long and hard, looking back at the inkling girl as he shakily stepped away from her, dropping the note in the process.

"H... How did you...?" He muttered, shocked, and creeped out before hearing Chloe and Lily's footsteps approaching them both. Agent 4 didn't even bother to look at him, only staring out to the Spawning Grounds as both girls appeared soon enough around the corner.

"Hey, what are you both up to?" Chloe asked as she and Lily came across the two, interested as Lazarus remained still, unmoving, and looking at Agent 4. "Laz? C'mon, again?!" She gave him a nudge on the arm, the male inkling taking his eyes off of their freelancer as Chloe blurted out his name once more, annoyed in her voice.

"SORRY, I'm... just a little bit in shock right now..." Lazarus shook his head, placing a hand of his onto his scalp as Chloe noticed his expression.  
"Yeah, I can see that. Why?" She looked at their freelancer, who was just busy staring out to the island they were heading towards.  
"Oh, you know..." He said as he looked at Agent 4 as well, Chloe sighing at him as she pulled him towards one of the nearby seats, much to her partner's confusion.

"Ugh, don't get any funny ideas about her, Laz. Remember our date tonight!" She said as she gave him a bump with her elbow, to which Lazarus responded with a flinch from his body as he and Chloe sat on one of the seats, preparing themselves as the familiar, disgusting smell of the toxic, repugnant ocean came into effect as everyone on board winced slightly with the exception of Agent 4, who didn't seem too affected by it. They saw Lily nervously walking over to Agent 4, who was still staring out to the Spawning Grounds, drawing something on her noteblock.

"Hey, Ariel...?" Lily mumbled as she got close to the inkling girl, to which Agent 4 looked up at her, her expression from earlier having been replaced with that of curiosity as she let out an incoherent gurgling sound, which made Lily take a step back, taken aback somewhat by her response.  
"Oh, I... I just wanted to ask, if you're excited to get some golden eggs with us!" She asked her, Agent 4 smiling, and nodding at her while letting out another gurgle that Lily found adorable, judging from how she chortled slightly as they both took in the view, the pinkish-blue skies above them making the view for them even more breathtaking.

For the girls, her behavior looked nothing short out of the ordinary for an inkling with a speech impediment. For Lazarus, however, it was nothing, but a forced facade of hers.

"Well... I'll just get myself ready before we begin, okay?" Lily asked as she went over to Lazarus and Chloe, Agent 4 responding with a hum as Lily sat with them, watching their freelancer continue to draw.

"She can't talk?" Chloe asked, Lily shrugging her shoulders while Lazarus just stared, wary around the inkling girl's presence.

"Seems like it. I wonder, how she's gonna communicate with us like that..." Lily answered, just as thoughtful as her friends were until they heard radio static on their headphones, followed by the voice of their boss coming on.

" _ **Right, then! Here we are, everyone!**_ " Mr. Grizz announced as the trio of inklings got up and walked over to the end of the ship where Agent 4 was, who looked more than ready for her shift to begin as she threw her notepad to the bench the three sat on. " _ **Y'all know what to do, correct?**_ "

"Collect the golden eggs, survive, rinse and repeat until everyone's shift is done!" Lazarus answered along with the other inklings that were on the boats around the island, their voice reverberating along with the others surrounding the Spawning Grounds as he furrowed his brows, staring out to where he, the girls and his other co-workers would be working at this evening until midnight hours.

" _ **Good! Let's not waste anymore time, and get to work!** **SG-08-30-N, you're up first!**_ " His voice raised a bit as everyone, with the exception of Agent 4 let out a "YES SIR!", all four of them turning into their squid forms before super jumping towards the island together in a jet of orange ink.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well, this certainly took much longer than expected. I apologize for that, since I didn't mean to take such a long time for this to be finished.**

 **The reason why it took this long, was because of a special event that was hosted during the entire autumn break, and I chose to work overtime, considering I really like the place I work at, as well as getting to do SOMETHING during the autumn break instead of just sitting in front of my computer all the time, doing nothing but writing this story for you. Gotta make it interesting, so that I have something to tell everyone else at college next week.**

 **I've also played Mann VS Machine in Team Fortress 2, Two Cities basically, trying to get an australium weapon or a killstreak kit since pretty much everyone and their mother at this point has to have at least one these days.**

 **That's really all I wanted to say, to be honest. Other than that, autumn break has been a good week overall! I can't really wait until college begins once more. The next chapter isn't going to be as long as the previous chapters, possibly around a 1000 or so words, maybe. In favor of the shortness of the next chapter, I will hopefully try to make it as interesting as possible to compensate!**

 **I'll see you all again in the next chapter!**


	10. IMPACT

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter X: IMPACT**_

"Thaddeus!" Hagar called out from the kitchen, having made dinner for herself and her son as she placed the pot of soup on the table along with some water, the smell of fish and cooked lobster emanating from within the cylindrical container filling the air with a delicious scent.  
"Yeah?!" She heard him yell from his room, most likely playing games on his computer, or surfing on the SplatNet.  
"Dinner's ready! Come on down!" She announced as she headed over to grab a pair of spoons for herself and Thaddeus, placing it into the bowls.  
"Coming!" He answered as rapid footsteps were heard approaching the kitchen, followed by sniffing, then an exhale.

"Damn, that actually smells pretty good! What are we having?" Thaddeus said upon entering, wearing a rockenberg black along with regular grey pants and white socks.

"Lobster and tomato soup, mixed with cooked fish strips, along with garlic bread!" His mother answered, to which he looked at the pot, interested as he pulled out a chair, sitting in front of the table before opening the cookware's lid to check the contents inside.  
"Damn, looks pretty delicious! Where's the bread?" He asked, the soup inside having a delicious-looking reddish-orange texture to it with strings of fish fillets within it as he licked his lips, just noticing his mother sitting in front of him, placing a large spoon into the pot as he began pouring some of the soup and strips into his bowl, warm steam and air emanating from both the pot and his bowl.

"Those will be done a few seconds, sweetie!" She said as she began pouring herself some of the contents within onto her bowl as well, taking a sip from it before letting out a single hum, satisfied with the taste as she went over to the oven to check on the bread with onion butter inside of it.

It looked ready.  
"I really hope, this isn't too disappointing, Thaddeus..." Hagar commented while putting on her mitts, eventually taking the garlic breads out, placing them onto the counter as she could hear Thaddeus slurping from his spoon, a satisfied noise coming out of him as well as she began separating the bread.

"Nah, don' worry 'bout it, it's all good." He commented as he chewed onto the tomato-flavored fillet he had found inside, his mother smiling at his thought of her dinner while she put the bread pieces in a different bowl for them both to grab from.

"I'm glad, that you like it!" Hagar answered as they ate their meal together, enjoying it with her own son until she began feeling her phone vibrating upon being halfway done with their food. She stopped eating from the bowl to take her device out while Thaddeus watched her, raising an eyebrow in the process.

Her face became pale, much to the confusion of Thaddeus before she abruptly got up from her seat, walking towards the living room while her son stopped eating the contents from his soup upon noticing his mother's behavior.

"Mom?" Thaddeus uttered, hearing her close the door to the living room as he got up to follow her out of worry, staring at the door for a while as he could hear the vibrations of his mother's phone within. He was about to open the door and ask her what's up, before a burst of static came from within that made him jump.

"Hello...?" She said, her voice timid, and quiet as Thaddeus simply stared in confusion, wondering what was happening.

Then, he heard an indecipherable, deep, reverberating voice came out of the other end, to the point that it made him freeze in his place until he heard his mother's voice again.

"Oh, h-hello, sir!" She said, optimistic, yet, nervous in her tone as she continued.  
"Yes, my evening's been fine, thanks for asking! I was just busy having some dinner with my son; Thaddeus, and..." She stopped as the voice came back, sounding as though something was played backward as the inkling boy took a peek through the lock, seeing his mother looking out the window showcasing Inkopolis City, seemingly entranced by the weird sounds and voice coming from her caller.

"Yeah? Yeah, we looked through Octo Canyon for the octoling today, but we couldn't find her anywhere." Hagar seemed to listen to every 'word' the being on the other end said, not knowing of Thaddeus looking through the lock, who was hearing nothing but indecipherable gibberish and mortified screaming as she continued listening to whatever was 'talking' to her.

"She's in Inkopolis?" Hagar asked, unsure in her voice, a barely audible hiss coming from the phone. "What makes you think that? She would of been caught the instant she set foot here! There's no way, that she's-" She stops, the gibberish on the phone's end becoming somewhat loud as Thaddeus saw her flinch at it, continuing to watch the conversation play out.

"Of course, forgive me, sir..." She mumbled, now sounding completely calm compared to her nervous attitude a few seconds ago, the incoherence on the phone returning back to its calm level as she listened to it.  
"I'm just skeptical of your idea, considering the headlines that would detail a random octoling all of a sudden being in our city! They would immediately be overwhelmed in the square!" Thaddeus took out his phone after feeling it vibrate in his pocket, going under his contacts before spotting his brother having sent a message to him.

Upon opening the application, he saw the message Lazarus had sent him.  
" _Thad, where the heck are you? You're gonna be late for work!_ " It said, most likely regarding his shift at Grizzco starting soon as Thaddeus noticed the time reading 5:55 PM. " _Shoot..._ " He thought to himself, beginning to think about just going to work to meet up with his brother and the girls and get it over with, only to look back at his mother conversing with whoever it was, most likely the creator, and owner of the Inkuisition he had been a part of before he replied to his brother's message.

" _leave me alone, laz._ " He sent his message without a second thought, resuming on listening to the conversation between his mother and her superior.

"Right, got it. I'll have Inkopolis under surveillance tomorrow, and... oh?" Hagar perked up at whatever she heard that Thaddeus couldn't.  
"What about him?" She remained quiet for a moment, the maniacal laughing on the phone causing Thaddeus to take a step backward, a wave of dread coming over him as he looked away from the peephole.

"You want Thaddeus to come tomorrow?" The inkling instantly became curious once she said that, swinging open the door, and walking over to his mother as she acknowledged his presence, turning to face him with a blank, expressionless stare.

"Alright, I'll have him be there by tomorrow noon." She said in a robotic tone, looking at him as a quiet, subtle noise reminiscent of a girl crying was heard on the phone, followed by his mother slowly smiling at him. Thaddeus took a step back, creeped out by all of the noises and his mother's behavior.

"Got it, I'll see you tomorrow, sir. Yeah, good bye." She finished before hanging up, looking at her son as Thaddeus stared at his mother, not knowing what to say.

"M... Mom...?" Was the only thing he could muster to say before Hagar walked over to him, a reassuring smile on her lips.

"Mom, the heck's going on?" He took another step back, feeling his body starting to quiver.  
"Don't worry, sweetheart, it's nothing..." She cooed, monotone in her voice as she laid a hand over him, stroking his hair before beckoning him to follow her back into the kitchen.  
It's as if, she hadn't heard any of the sounds he heard from her phone.

"Come, let's go finish our dinner, okay?" She left the living room before he could say anything in response, entering the kitchen, as well as resuming her meal while Thaddeus just stood there on the carpet, mystified about what just happened before deciding to follow her inside, although, reluctantly so.

He couldn't help, but feel, as though his mother was hiding something from him and his brother, especially with how she could understand that garbled mess of sounds that was her caller, as if it were just a normal conversation between two normal beings.

" _Her eyes..._ " He thought to himself, afraid of what she had talked with as he watched his mother sip away from her soup. " _...something's not right..._ "

* * *

 **Author's Note: If you were surprised by how short this chapter was, then you probably didn't read the previous chapter's author's note, which clarified this.**

 **Now, as I promised in Chapter 8, I'm going to be taking a little break from writing, in favor of focusing on updating some of the current chapters. I want you all to take the time to read these ideas, considering I want to hear your thoughts on the changes I have planned to refine Chapters 1-10.**

 **Here are the following updates I have planned.**  
 _ **1)**_ **Changing Lazarus' name to Lazar.**  
I believe, that Lazar is a better-sounding name overall, because the "us" just makes it sound awkward to read aloud, as well as the fact, that the name just doesn't fit, in my opinion.

 _ **2)**_ **Making the first encounter between Lazarus and Ariel more realistic.**  
I'll be honest here: The encounter right now just didn't feel natural. For me, it just feels rushed in terms of pacing and interactions. This is going to be changed in the updates that'll come during the weekend.

 _ **3)**_ **Refining some of the dialogue.**  
In my opinion, the dialogue in the earliest chapters just doesn't live up to the standards of the recent chapters. This is the part I'm going to be focusing on the most, aside from the second improvement I want to make to this story.

 **Once I've finished the updates, the author's note will be changed to match what has been complete, and I'll begin writing Chapter 11 once the chapters have been updated all at once. So, until then, I'll see you all on the flipside.**


	11. A Mystery Unfolds

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XI: A Mystery Unfolds**_

" _ **DON'T LET THE MOTHERSHIP TAKE MY EGGS!**_ " Mr. Grizz roared on the radio as the flying object in the dark, night sky above everyone was making its way towards the egg basket.

It was the last wave of salmonids for Lazarus and the girls to fend off, and it's been rough for everyone in his group, thanks to the constant movement, shifting locations on the Spawning Grounds, switching out with other co-workers after every third wave, as well as keeping a count on the amount of eggs required. The hordes of salmonids were constantly popping out of the crates the chinooks carried, smashing the boxes alone to drive them away while keeping an eye on the mothership making it even more of a chore for the four to collect the amount of eggs needed, along with the amount of time they had left being only half a minute left.

"LILY, USE THE STINGRAY!" Lazarus ordered as Lily did what he ordered her to do, having previously used it when the mothership went to the egg basket the first time as everyone were heading to where it was going, readying their weapons with Lily standing on the highest point of the island, aiming her special at the oncoming hovercraft as its vacuum was dangling from the bottom.

" _ **SHE'S GONNA TAKE 'EM FROM ME! DO SOMETHIN', QUICK!**_ " Mr. Grizz yelled his lungs out as it approached, the hair on Lily bubbling with a fiery orange color as a transparent ray shot through the salmonids' creation.  
"NOW!" Chloe yelled as with one, long-lasting ray of orange ink being shot at it from Lily's stingray special, many golden eggs began popping out of the mothership as Chloe activated her special, taking to the skies with her inkjet, and shooting at the vacuum that was sucking out the eggs.

Immediately after the first shots from Chloe, though, a thing began to strike them as odd.  
The object wasn't retreating like it used to, and it kept sucking up the eggs from the basket despite the continuous onslaught of ink splattering on it, sweat dropping from everyone's foreheads as Lazarus saw the number on the basket's counter dropping.

"THEY'RE TAKING OUR EGGS!" Lily and Lazarus screamed at the same time.  
"HIT HARDER, COME ON!" Chloe yelled in response while Mr. Grizz was shouting on the radio for them to get the vacuum out of his basket in his most furious, explosive voice, just before everyone could hear some garbled screams from the salmonids piloting it. It sounded as though they were panicking about something as the vacuum kept sucking up the eggs despite this, sparks of electricity coming out of it with every strike from the inklings below as Lazarus felt his arms getting tired with each swing from his roller.

"IT'S NOT LETTING GO!" He yelled out, trying to lift his roller for another swing.  
"WE'RE NOT GONNA-" With a sudden scream from nowhere, 'Ariel', their freelancer for the night, started throwing a bunch of splat bombs into the mothership after activating her special, the bombs landing into the carrier blowing up from within as one, last muffled screeching could be heard from within, just before the hovercraft exploded in a large shower of glowing, orange ink a few seconds later after its engine began whirring loudly.

Shards of flaming scraps of metal and crates flew everywhere, along with a money's worth of golden and power eggs dropping onto the ground as even the salmonids coming out of the boxes looked up in a mix of horror and shock, halting their attack to witness this disaster they, and the inklings haven't seen before.

The mothership remained at the basket for far too long to even retreat, a moment of silence filling the air between everyone as debris kept falling from the sky, nearly crushing Lazarus in the process as he barely dodged the metal that fell into his place with a jump to the side.

" _ **Well, I'LL BE DAMNED!**_ " Mr. Grizz said on the radio after stunned silence, sounding just as shocked as everyone else, followed by a short laugh from him. " _ **NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL A FIREWORKS SHOW! GAHAHAHAHAHA!**_ " Mr. Grizz laughed wholeheartedly on the radio, followed by distant applause from inklings on the boats surrounding the Spawning Grounds as the team of four kept standing where they were, shocked by what just happened.

Needless to say, Lazarus and everyone else applauded each other for their accomplishment after overcoming their brief astonishment, happily complimenting each other before heading their way towards the docks where all of the golden eggs were scattered around, a group of snatchers trying to scurry up any eggs they could find as quick as possible.  
"Come on, guys! LET'S NAB 'EM!" Lazarus said, acting as a means of protection against the incoming salmonids trying to scoop any of the eggs up, splatting anyone that tried to interfere with his, or the girls' jobs as everyone picked up as many as they could, swimming back and forth between the basket as they did so while avoiding the remaining onslaught, watching the numbers on the basket quickly rising past the quota.

"Just one more, come on!" Lily yelled as Chloe raced towards the basket with a golden egg on her lifesaver, just in the nick of time of depositing it inside before the basket disappeared into the ground along with the golden eggs they missed disappearing.

"BOOYAH! TAKE THAT!" Chloe cheered, repeatedly shifting between her squid and humanoid form along with Lily after the group had defeated their recent horde of salmonids, the swarm of them as a result beginning to run for their lives, trying to get to the waters as quickly as possible while Lazarus and their freelancer descended upon them with their weapons.  
A few of the unfortunate cohocks were too slow to get away from the group of inklings, their power eggs being collected as a result as the squadron of inklings gave each other a group hug afterward, laughing with each other as they heard their co-workers yelling for them from the distant boats nearby before a siren went off after their squid party, right after the waters became still and unmoving.

" _ **R**_ _ **ight, that's enough for today, kids! Get back to your boat, at once!**_ " Their boss announced on the radio, the four of them turning into their squid forms as they prepared to propel themselves towards it.  
The girls and Lazarus responded by jetting towards their boat before landing onto it a few seconds later, a sigh of relief coming from everyone upon arrival.

Lazarus, tired of tonight's work, laid on the cold, hard ground, sweat rolling from his hair as he took off his cap, feeling his body going numb from the whole shift he'd been through.

"Freaking hell..." He huffed, the girls giving him funny, yet, concerned looks as Chloe went over to him, a tired smile on her face as she knelt over him.

"You okay there, Laz?" Chloe questioned as she helped him up to his feet, a painful feeling searing over Lazarus' head as he clutched it.  
"Ughhhh, it hurts..." Lazarus mumbled, placing a hand over his head as Chloe answered by helping him over to one of the benches on board the ship, sitting next to him as Lily and 'Ariel' approached them.

"Hey, what's wrong with him?" Lily asked, concerned about her friend as Chloe looked up at her, somewhat worried on her expression.

"Just a headache, Lil. Can you get him something to drink?" She replied, keeping Lazarus close to herself as Lily did what Chloe asked, running into the boat's interior to find anything for Lazarus he could drink.  
Just as Lily went through the door, the trio could hear Mr. Grizz's voice coming on their headphones.

" _ **Alright, I've tallied up the eggs you've collected tonight, and... well, I'm DAMN impressed!**_ " A faint chuckle came out of the radio, their boss sounding ecstatic despite the gruffness in his voice.  
" ** _89 eggs in total!_** _ **That was actually some of the best professional work I've seen from you all in quite a** **while!**_ " Mr. Grizz paused, a rough exhale coming from him after he held his breath for a while.  
" _ **I've** **also RARELY seen kids like you destroy a mothership, too! That, I am most amazed with, coming from your work tonight!**_ " Chloe's eyes widened at this statement along with her mouth opening slightly. If she could picture Mr. Grizz in front of her right now, she'd see him smiling at her and the others, proud of everyone's recent achievement.

"Really?!" Chloe grinned, ecstatic about her superior's statement as Lazarus, even in his tired state, felt proud of himself for hearing that.

" ** _Well-_** "  
"Wait... you've never seen inklings destroy a mothership before...?" Lazarus asked, curious about his employer's statement before feeling the pain in his head returning. The trio of inklings could hear Mr. Grizz let out a humph, followed by a cough.

Chloe looked at Lazarus sternly, to which he uttered out a simple: "What?"  
He soon realized, that he had cut his boss off, to which he scoffed at himself for doing, wanting to apologize to Mr. Grizz before his voice came back on.

" _ **I have, actually.**_ " He broke the excitement for them as Lily came out with a glass of juice in hand, the expressions of everyone fading into disappointment before he continued.  
" _ **Now now, don't get too upset!**_ _ **Usually, the adults are in charge of that, while you kids simply drive it back for repairs. As I said, I've almost never seen inklings your age demolish it like that.**_ " Mr. Grizz genuinely sounded impressed on the other end, the faces of each inkling lighting up once more as they knew, they've done something that their co-workers couldn't do while Lazarus simply half-smiled, grabbing the juice that Lily handed over.  
" _ **That alone proves, you have a very, VERY special future here, kids. You seriously should consider a professional career here if you can pull somethin' like that off!**_ " Their boss let out a single chuckle, followed by what sounded like him smoking from a cigarette.

"Thanks, Mr. Grizz! You hear that, girls?! We're gonna have a very special future here!" Chloe asked excitedly, Lily and 'Ariel' responding with positive remarks while Lazarus smiled at their jovial attitudes, sighing as he rested his head, drinking from his glass as he saw a jet of pink ink flying towards the Spawning Grounds from a different ship in the yonder.

" _ **Anyways, I've got quite the payment waitin' for ya at home for pullin' that off, as well as collectin' all of those eggs for me tonight. Have a safe trip back home, and good night!**_ " With that, the feed cut off, and everyone were left by themselves as they spectated their co-workers fending off the next salmon run. Lily and 'Ariel' were chatting with each other, the former of the two remarking on how well their freelancer did despite her speech impediment while Chloe was tending Lazarus, who was still feeling dizzy after swinging his roller at the mothership so much.

"Hey, feeling better, Laz?" She sat next to him, curious about his current condition.

"Yeah, thanks..." He smiled at her, finishing off his drink with a swig before placing the glass next to him.  
"Glad you're okay!" She patted him on the shoulder, which Lazarus gladly embraced as she looked at him for quite a while, her smile looking to become more timid as she looked back to the girls.

"So, um..." She trailed off after giving the inkling boy a good bump on the shoulder, gathering a response from him looking at her, curious about what she wanted.  
"...you, uh... ready for that... date, or what?" She couldn't help, but grin at him with blushed cheeks, her smile being sheepish as Lazarus felt his heart skip a beat for a second, wanting to say something before the ship's horn let out a blaring noise, causing him to let out a yelp out of shock as he felt the boat's engines revving up. It was time to go back to Inkopolis City.

"Y-yeah! Heh, gee, that horn's pretty loud sometimes..." Lazarus mumbled, inciting a short chuckle from Chloe, who was covering her ears as he subtlety inched himself a bit towards her.

"Yeah, I know." Chloe responded, just before she and Lazarus felt the boat starting to move, thanks to the wind blowing onto them becoming more apparent.

"Holy mackerel, I still can't believe we destroyed a mothership today!" She continued, clearly wanting to continue the conversation while Lazarus nodded at her, rubbing his hair as he put the Grizzco cap back on.  
"It just went KA-BOOM, KA-BLOOSH! Like, wasn't that so awesome?!" He responded with a giggle at Chloe's enthusiasm, feeling his appendages having calmed down from all the work he put into today.

"Yeah, it was! Shoulda seen the looks on those freaks when we were collecting the eggs!" He answered back, enjoying his ride back home as he and Chloe kept their conversation going while Lily and 'Ariel' continued with theirs, Lazarus finding himself smiling at not just Chloe having found tonight's salmon run fun and enjoyable, but Lily finding herself a new, potential friend of hers.

"Heh, kind of a shame we didn't collect all of those eggs, though..." Chloe sighed, regarding about all the eggs that they didn't collect after the mothership blew up, to which Lazarus placed an arm over her shoulder.

"Hey, don't worry 'bout it! We'll collect them all next time, right?" He beamed at her, to which Chloe's expression brightened up, nodding at him with an optimistic remark as they saw their capital city approaching in the distance.

* * *

Having changed their clothes after returning to Inkopolis, the group walked out of the Grizzco building together, looking fresh as new with glistening hair and skin as they went over to the window to get their payment for today, excited to see what they'd get.

"Welp, ya ready, girls?" Lazarus asked as he opened up the window, the girls behind him eagerly waiting for their payment with the exception of 'Ariel', who had a neutral, but interested look on her face.  
"Come on, let's see what we get!" Chloe said encouragingly, anticipating for their payment as the gachapons for each inkling rolled out, along with something else that caught everyone's attention.

A job application for them that only inklings around the age of 18 can apply for, along with a personal note from their boss near the bottom-left corner.  
" _ **Come apply for this job when you're 18. You all have great potential.**_ " along with Mr. Grizz's signature and logo at the right corner, as well as a picture of the mothership they destroyed.

"Huh, would you look at that!" Lazarus exclaimed, smiling at the application as he looked at Chloe and Lily around him.

"Eeeee! He must be really impressed with us destroying that mothership!" Chloe answered back after her squeal of enthusiasm, readjusting her built-in gloves of her jacket as the inklings went down to the square, noticing their freelancer heading to the Crust Bucket with her recently-earned tickets to buy herself something to eat or drink.

"Y'know..." Lazarus folded his arms, watching 'Ariel' lining up in front of the trailer.  
"I feel kinda hungry, to be honest." Lazarus mumbled as he covered his mouth with his hand, tapping one of his cheeks as he watched the freelancer using up all of her tickets, despite the food being too much for her to eat as they pointed at what they wanted.

"Me too! Hey, Lily!" Chloe turned towards her, seeing Lily looking up from her phone, a perplexed "Hm?" coming out of the inkling.  
"You wanna come with us?" Chloe asked, pointing at the trailer while Lily looked at it.

"To the Crust Bucket...?" Lily questioned her, to which Chloe answered with a happy "Yeah!".  
"Sure, I guess..." She muttered quietly, following the pair as they waited for their turn, seeing as everyone in the square looked to be a little hungry themselves for tonight.

As they waited, Lazarus couldn't help, but notice 'Ariel' walking past them over to Ammo Knights with boxes full of food in a bag, looking at her surroundings before opening the manhole nearby.

"Hey, Chloe." Lazarus whispered to her, grabbing her attention as she turned to look at him, apparently noticing his curious expression.

"What's up?" Chloe wondered, taking a step forward as they neared the front window of the Crust Bucket.  
"Look over there for a sec'." Lazarus said as he pointed at where their freelancer was, an interested Chloe staring at his direction, seeing them throwing away the boxes into the manhole.  
"The heck...?! Why is she throwing them away?!" Chloe whispered out loud to her friend, Lily noticing their confusion on her before looking at where her new one was, noticing them dumping the food, becoming just as confused as Chloe was at what she was doing.  
"What is Ariel doing?" Lily questioned quietly, to which Chloe shook her head before shrugging her shoulders as they saw them close the manhole before turning into their squid form, hopping inside it with a splash of ink coming out.

The three of them didn't say a word to each other, only staring at the manhole 'Ariel' jumped into before looking at each other, mystified by what she saw.

Strangely, Lazarus didn't seem too affected by what he saw, much to the girls' suspicion until they heard someone coming from the Crust Bucket.  
"Hey, squiddo! Are you comin' over here, or are ya just gonna make me wait?" Crusty Sean called out to the trio, waving towards them. Just now, Chloe noticed, that she and the others were next as the line of inklings behind them were getting slightly impatient.

"Sorry!" She grinned to herself, putting on a smile as she and the others walked over to the crustacean with the line of customers following them.  
"Yeah, hi, I'll have a..."

* * *

 _ **In Octo Canyon, at Tentakeel Outpost...**_

While Marie was outside, keeping watch for anyone suspicious, Callie was busy comforting Ariel after her traumatic meltdown while she and the octoling were watching some shows together on her computer in near-darkness, one show in particular they were watching, was a documentary about aquatic life, allowing them both to learn everything about the underwater world and its inhabitants from the past and their evolution.

"Wow... so that's what our ancestors look like?" Ariel asked as a squid and octopus appeared on the picture together, intrigued about the documentary as Callie took a sip out of a juice box, watching the squid that was displayed finding its latest meal onscreen.

"Yep! Gramps' ancestry, as well as ours, is the cuttlefish squid!" She claimed, her tone being optimistic and happy as she laid back on the couch.  
"Pretty cool, huh?" She pointed out while the squid changed its colors to blend in with the sand as it was fed on a crab, Ariel looking at the creature in awe and interest.

"Yeah..." The octoling mumbled, nodding as she took one last bite from her sandwich before nothing was left on the plate.  
As it changed scenes to the octopus having a battle with another of its kind, they were interrupted by Marie opening the door to the cabin, turning their heads towards her.

"Hey, Agent 4's back, you two." Marie uttered, holding the door open for her student as they walked in, holding a bag in her hand as she waved at them, a glee on her face as she did so.

"Oh, welcome back, Agent 4!" Callie welcomed her as she saw the Crust Bucket logo on the boxes they were carrying, the smell of fried hot dogs and baked waffles filling the cabin she and the others were in.  
"Anything new from Crusty Sean?" The squid sister asked, to which Agent 4 nodded happily as they placed the food onto the table, to which Callie went over to get some for herself, leaving Ariel on the couch to watch the documentary that interested her so much.

As Marie watched her cousin take out a waffle and nibble on it, she saw Agent 4 pulling out her notepad, writing on it before presenting a paper to her.

" _Hey,_ _I just met that Lazarus boy today at Grizzco, and he said, that he was gonna come here with one of his friends tonight._ " Marie's expression turned into that of surprise, and not in a good way as she stared at Agent 4 after reading it, then at Ariel.

"Wait, seriously?" The pop star asked, confused in her tone as Ariel looked at her, wondering why she was acting weird once more. Was it because she did something wrong that upset her?

"Why didn't you tell me about this, Agent 4?!" Marie questioned her student, who shyly looked at the floor below her before writing her answer to her, albeit slowly as her mentor waited, glancing over at the octoling.

" _Ariel said to Lazarus, that she'd tell you about him coming here. Please, don't hurt Ariel again..._ " Reading the last part of her response, Marie laid her eyes on Ariel, who was glancing at her, only to look back at the documentary, moving her face close to the screen upon noticing the squid sister looking at her as she made her way towards her.

"Ariel?" Marie called her name out, the octoling continuing to stare at what was displayed before she sat down next to her with a cup of tea in hand, giving her a prod on the arm.

"H-huh?!" Ariel looked at her, already nervous of her intentions as the idol kept a tranquil look on her expression.

"Don't act like you didn't look at me, you." She chided sarcastically, giving her a bump with her fist upon getting comfortable on the sofa.  
"I just wanna talk, that's all..." She calmed her down, succeeding in doing so as Ariel's limbs stopped tensing up after realizing that she wasn't going to be as scolding or angry with her like before.

"Oh, I... sure, I guess...?" Ariel mumbled, an exhale coming out of her as she turned her body towards the idol.  
"W-what do you want?" Inquiring the squid sister, Ariel expected whatever question Marie might ask of her, whether it be personal or not.

"It's actually about that boy you met today. Lazarus, was his name?" Marie half-smiled reassuringly, crossing her legs together as she took sip from her cup.

"Y-yeah...? What about him?" The octoling blinked awkwardly, knowing who they were going talk about.

"I heard, that he's coming here tonight, right?" She raised an eyebrow as she said this, seeing Ariel's face change into that of disturbance as they opened their mouth a bit, as if they didn't expect her to know about this.

"H-how'd you-?"  
"Agent 4 told me about it." Marie answered, cutting her off.  
"Don't know where she got the info from, but she said, that Lazarus is coming with a friend, too." The squid sister explained as she eyed the documentary Ariel was watching, watching it shift to a view of the ocean with seagulls and other birds flying over the body of water.  
"And stop acting so scared, Ariel. Sheesh, seeing you like this is kind of depressing, to be honest." She added on as she watched what was displayed on the laptop, humming a small melody as Ariel sighed, looking away from her.

"So... I gotta hide again?" Ariel asked, sounding annoyed, but nervous at the same time as Marie gave her a shrug with her shoulders.

"I dunno, if you feel like going back to Cephalon HQ, then yeah." She replied bluntly, taking out her phone as she began scrolling through whatever was on it.

Ariel remained quiet, thinking about what Marie said before hearing something outside, coming from the manhole as she saw the squid sister's ears perk up.

"I'll be right back." Marie uttered as she got up from her seat, walking over to the window to look out at it as Ariel saw her sassy expression shift to that of bewilderment.  
"Callie?" Marie called out, sounding alarmed as her cousin walked over to her.

"What's up, cuz?" She asked, to which her eyes laid on two figures approaching the cabin after Marie allowed her to see through the window she was looking at.

She saw a pair of inklings, a boy and a girl with orange tentacles, the former of the two she recognized almost immediately from the prune parashooter, eye color and hairstyle alone as Lazarus.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'm back, everyone! After a month of waiting, the story continues!**

 **I want to clear up a few things regarding my absence, and I really do apologize for taking so long with the update. I've been trying to get into a competitive highlander team for TF2, with some luck so far, actually! I've also been focusing on college more than I do on this story, as well as spending my weekends with my friends online, as well as real life.**

 **Really, I don't want to get too personal about stuff, so I'll just cut to the chase. I've been really busy this past month or so, and it's made you all tired of waiting. All I can say, is sorry for keeping you all waiting. I can't promise, that there will be more chapters coming your way soon, but I'll try to make them as fast as possible, while still putting my care and love into each chapter.**

 **Glad to be back here, everyone. Let's see how well these next 10 chapters will do!**


	12. Heart-to-Heart

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XII: Heart-to-Heart**_

Chloe, Lazarus and Lily have been waiting for Crusty Sean to finish their meals for the night along with many other inklings feeling hungry themselves, watching the line of customers putting up the orders for their meals from one of the tables while the prawn was cooking up the food, as well as taking their orders at the same time.

They continued watching this charade go on until there were no customers left in the line, to which Lazarus decided to take this opportunity to have a little talk with the owner of the Crust Bucket, getting up from his table and walking over to the front of the trailer, telling the girls to stay where they were.

On the counter, he could see all the meals and drinks that were prepared, placing his hands on the ledge before lifting himself up, seeing what everyone's favorite shrimp was doing at the moment.

"Crusty Sean?" Lazarus called his name out, the lobster glancing over at him, taken aback somewhat by the inkling's position.

"Oi, what's up, squiddo?!" He asked enthustiastically while frying some lobsters, putting in the ingredients, as well as pouring some sauce into the bread, before laying the meat on it before opening up grill frying up the waffles, the scent making Lazarus feel hungry as he licked his lips. Clearly, he looked to be busy with the food he was making, but still had a good time doing all this.

" _Dang, he's clearly enjoying himself..._ " Lazarus stared with a skewed smile, flabbergasted how Crusty Sean could multitask this much without stressing himself out.  
"'ey, I just wanted to talk 'bout that orange girl with small tentacles you served! The one who bought a load of your food!" The inkling let go of the counter he held onto, just in time to see Crusty Sean finishing up Chloe's meal, a regular-sized seanwich with a swim-speed apple smoothie before heading over to finish Lily's waffle.

"Oh, her?! She's me special customer 'round here!" He happily answered from within the trailer, the sound of whipped cream being poured out as Lazarus felt like lifting himself back up, doing so after feeling his strength returning.

"right, well, if she's so special, then why is she throwing your food away into a manhole?" Crusty Sean stopped what he was doing, looking at Lazarus with a peculiar look as he walked over to him with a seanwich and waffle on a food table.

"Ya mean the one near Ammo Knights?" The prawn asked, placing a board of plastic on the counter with the items as he stared out to the weapons center.

"Yeah, that one!" Lazarus responded, letting go of the counter he was holding onto and dropping himself onto the ground as a female inkling went over to pick her meal up, thanking Crusty Sean for the food and drink.  
"Is it because, she works for Callie and Marie?" He asked after the girl had left to find herself a table to sit at, raising an eyebrow of interest as Crusty Sean's eyes widened somewhat at his assumption.

Slowly, but surely, Lazarus could hear something was wrong behind him, turning around to see the batch of inklings talking amongst each other by the tables, as well as the inkling girl that came for her food looking at him with curious, excited expressions, having listened to what he just said about the Squid Sisters along with Chloe and Lily looking around themselves, confused as to why everyone became so silent.

"Not so loud here, please!" Crusty Sean shushed him, looking behind himself before facing the inkling again.  
"Let's talk 'bout this behind me trailer instead, ya?" He gestured Lazarus to go behind the vehicle he was, the male inkling looking at Chloe and Lily, who were waiting for their meals to arrive.

"Sure, why not?" Lazarus shrugged, and did what Crusty Sean requested of him, but not until he grabbed the plastic tables holding the girls' drinks and seanwiches as he went over to them, giving it to them.

"Thanks, Laz!" Chloe said, already digging into her meal as Lily took a drink from her smoothie.

"No probs! I'll be right back!" He told them as Lazarus went behind the trailer, watching the owner of the vehicle finishing up their remaining orders, and handing them over to his customers one by one, including Lazarus' before Crusty Sean closed the Crust Bucket for the night.

"Hoof... Proud ol' me needs some water!" Lazarus could hear Crusty Sean mumble from within, the sound of a fridge inside the trailer opening before he came back out, holding a bottle of water in his claw.  
"Say... what did ya wanna talk about again, squiddo?" The tall lobster asked, sweating as he popped open the cap on his bottle.

"It's about that special customer of yours." The inkling answered, resting his back on the trailer's wall.

"Oi, I remember now! Ya think, that me special customer works for 'em both?" The tall lobster questioned, his jovial expression replaced with an interested, perplexed look as he pulled open the cap.

"Yeah! I actually worked with her today in finding an octoling called Ariel, and..." Lazarus looked around, trying to see if anyone was listening in on their discussion while Crusty Sean glugged down some of his water, looking to be sweating somewhat as he took his beanie off, breathing as though he had been exhausting himself.  
"...well, she's actually Agent 4 of the Squid Sisters, in that cabin in Octo Canyon." He saw Crusty Sean's eyes perking up, placing a claw underneath his chin, tapping it as he did so.

"Are you pullin' me leg here, or somethin'?" The tall one sounded doubtful, wondering if he was telling the truth or making it up as Lazarus kept a straight face, a: "I'm not, you don't believe me?" coming out of him as Crusty Sean looked back at the street, looking to be pondering about something.  
"So tha's why she throws me food into the manhole? To share with 'em squid sisters at Octo Canyon...?" Crusty Sean mumbled to himself after taking a quick sip from his bottle, while Lazarus opened up an application on his phone.

"Maybe, I don't know. There wasn't a whole lotta food in their fridge, that's for sure..." Lazarus remembered how the refrigerator looked like went to get himself something to eat at their cabin, the refrigerator looked to be lacking somewhat in both food and drinks.  
"'specially with almost nothing to eat, aside from your seanwiches and smoothies inside." Along with the other items he mentioned, he found some drinkable water that had been used, cartons of juice with various flavors, cold soda, and some other ingredients used for putting on a slice of bread.

Sadly, there weren't any signs of bread loaves in the cabin, which made Lazarus wonder, if they, or Agent 4 ever went to the supermarket near the square to get some in the first place.

"You for real, squiddo? They're gonna 'ave their palate stifled if they continue buying seanwiches from me!" The owner of the Crust Bucket mumbled, his tone having turned soft as Lazarus hummed at him, agreeing on what he was saying.

Time passed for Lazarus and Crusty Sean, before the latter of the two spoke up.  
"Ya know, as much as I like 'em both, that Squid Sister pair 'aven't been interactin' with me that much after their last splatfest two years ago, 'specially after Callie was found last month!" He sounded melancholy by the looks of things, a huge contrast to his usual optimistic, bubbly attitude as Lazarus was all ears on what he said, interested himself on what everyone's favorite fast food owner had to say.  
"Don't get me wrong! I don't hate 'em for neglectin' me or anythin', I just..." A sharp exhale came from him before he sat down on the steps up to his trailer, hand still under his chin as he snapped his claw repeatedly at the air, looking at the bottle in his other claw.  
"...I just wish, that they'd come 'ere sometimes, and meet lil' ol' me and the other shopkeepers they'd visit a lot back in the plaza! They'd buy the freshest clothes to try out when I owned that shoe store back then!" He returned back to his usual self, to which Lazarus couldn't help, but half-smile at the crustacean's story as he took a bite out of the seanwich he held.

He remembered, that his mother would often take him and his brother with her to Shrimp Kicks to try out any new shoewear for kids that were still developing, as well as Thaddeus wanting to try out the new best-selling pair of shoes for any Turf Wars or Ranked Battles that would help him and his teammates out.  
More often than not, however, the inklings whom were fully developed would mostly pick on Lazarus for being "unfresh," not as cool as them, as well as getting things for free, just because his parent was with him while his brother protected him from the other inklings around his age, threatening them to a battle of turf wars, promising that he'd give them a beating if they ever bullied him like that despite his mother getting angry at him for his actions.

"Heh, I actually remember, when you owned Shrimp Kicks..." Lazarus revealed as Crusty Sean looked at him funnily, the loud chatter and laughter of inklings near the food truck having quieted down as the two continued.

"Ya do?" Having his interest grabbed, Crusty Sean looked at Lazarus' shoes, the yellow and grey color on them catching his eyes as the inkling boy took a sip from his smoothie.

"Yeah! My bro was a big deal back then, you know? Always rockin' those punk cherries, white inky rider and special forces beret on! You remember him, right?" Lazarus looked at Crusty Sean, noticing him analyzing his shoes before a smile crept on his server's face.

"A wee lil' bit, actually!" He happily answered, a yawn coming out of him as he stood up.  
"Usually a regular, would come in every day at me store to look for anythin' that would make 'im as fresh as a fruit for the ripenin'!" Crusty Sean clapped with his smaller legs, looking at his customers at the tables while Lazarus watched with him, looking at Chloe looking concerned, and talking to Lily about something.  
"Actually, I take it all back, he wasn't always the freshest kid on the block, sadly..." The shrimp added, which Lazarus took notice of as his smile faded.

"Why?" He raised an eyebrow, folding his arms.

"Well..." Crusty Sean stopped clapping his shoes together, relaxing his back against his trailer as he rubbed his face.  
"...he'd usually threaten some of me customers that got 'im the tiniest bit annoyed, which was actually one of the reasons me business closed down when people stopped coming after a huge argument broke out between your bro and a rival of 'is..." Crusty Sean sighed as he reminisced on his past, which struck Lazarus in the heart as he felt nothing, but shame for his brother's actions, wanting to apologize for Thaddeus' behavior to the former store owner before he felt something in his hand vibrate.

He quickly checked his phone out, and saw a new message from Chloe.  
" _laz, where are you? :/_ "

"I... I'm sorry, I gotta go." Lazarus said as he began making his way towards the pair of girls, sprinting towards them as he felt a heavy feeling hanging over him.  
"Thanks for the talk, Sean!" He waved to him, nervously laughing as Crusty Sean stared back, trying to smile the best he could as he waved back at the inkling.

"Nice talkin' to ya too, squiddo!" Lazarus heard him call out from behind. Even with the optimistic tone in the prawn's voice, he still couldn't help, but feel guilty about what happened to Shrimp Kicks as he saw the Crust Bucket's lights turning off.

* * *

"Hey, I'm back!" He made his presence known as the pair stopped conversing to look at him, an expression of delight appearing on Chloe's face as he sat in front of her.

"There you are! Where the heck were you?!" She asked while eating her meal, enjoying every piece of its crispy flavor.

"Y-yeah, sorry 'bout leaving you two, just talked with Crusty Sean behind his trailer about "you-know-who."" His eyes went over to the manhole near Ammo Knights, a short-lasting chortle coming out of him as Chloe looked a bit suspicious about his behavior while Lily curiously looked at the sewer grate as well.

"You mean our freelancer?" Guessing after she swallowed her bite, Chloe noticed Lily's behavior, looking at where she was looking.

"Pretty much." Lazarus responded, eyeing one of the cups with straws on Chloe's table before grabbing one of them from her, wanting to humor himself from his talk with Crusty Sean earlier about his brother.  
"Mind if I have this?" He asked her once she turned to face him, surprised by Lazarus having snatched one of her drinks, and drinking from it nonetheless.

"Y-! You sneaky squid, give that back!" She grinned as he drank from her cup, a smirk on his lips as he laughed a bit with her after releasing his lips from the straw.  
" _Much better..._ " He thought to himself.  
"Thanks for the loan, Chloe! Tastes pretty good!" He remarked with a wink, sarcastically so as he passed the cup back to her.

She simply sighed and shook her head at him, to which Lazarus continued grinning at her stupidly while she and Lily finished up their seanwiches and drinks moments later.

"Alright, Laz, as punishment for stealing my smoothie, you'll tell me and Lily where Octo Canyon is! Or else..." She demanded after throwing away her garbage, staring Lazarus down with a grin, obviously trying to be as intimidating as possible while he just watched her with a blank look, followed by a single chuckle coming out of him as his smirk reappeared soon after.

"You're adorable when you do that, you know?" He said, his voice resonating with slyness as her cheeks took an immediate deep, orange color, along with removing her hands from the table.

"S-shut up...! Just show me where we're going, okay?!" Chloe requested while he continued smiling at her, embarrassed by Lazarus' comment, especially when she saw some of the other inklings around her and the others watching her.

"If you say so. Follow me." He shrugged as he got up, his expression soon turning into that of confusion at everyone paying attention to them.  
" _Jeez, stop looking at her, we get it..._ " The boy thought to himself with a wary expression, almost wanting to say it out loud before he remembered mentioning the Squid Sisters, noticing the girls feeling just as uncomfortable as him before they eventually walked from their seats, and went over to Ammo Knights together, away from all the inklings before they ended up standing above the manhole.

None of the inklings from the Crust Bucket seemed to follow them, thankfully. A good thing too, concerning his and Chloe's private date for the night.

With a sigh of relief, Lazarus looked down at the grate below him, then back at the two behind him.  
"Right..." He started, facing his body towards them.  
"...when we get in, just follow me, okay?" Lazarus explained with an outgoing expression, trying his best to not look nervous as Chloe smiled back, a bit excited for their date while Lily listened with a look of timidacy, holding a hand over her stomach.

"Okay! Let's go, Lily, come on!" Chloe insisted as she walked up to him, just before Lazarus turned into his squid form, and hopped into the manhole with a splash of orange ink coming out of the grates before she and Lily joined him seconds later.

* * *

It took Lazarus and the girls a while for them to find Octo Canyon, seeing how the sewers at this time were barely lit by the lamps hanging from above, as well as some of the traffic with other inklings and locals from other parts of Inkopolis traversing through them in their squid or fish forms. As inconvenient as it was with them having to give way for the oncoming bystanders, they didn't have to bear with any traffic for too long before eventually reaching the familiar sign displaying the Inkuisition's logo on it minutes later, displaying a " _RESTRICTED ACCESS_ " text written in a green color in their native language.

"Well, here it is, girls!" Lazarus called out to them, his voice garbled somewhat by the tentacles over his mouth as he sat up in his squid form to look at the two behind him.  
He was only met with the void of nothing, noticing that they weren't following him like he asked them to. Concerned, he felt like calling their names out to make sure they weren't lost, before someone's squid form eventually came into view, slowly swimming towards him.

"Hey..." Chloe blurted out softly, her voice having the same effect as Lazarus' from the tentacles covering her beak.

"Hey, where'd Lily go?" He inquired, wondering where their friend was as Chloe's eyes lowered, looking disappointed about something despite the lack of a mouth or face.

"She's heading back home." Chloe returned as an answer, folding her tentacles together.

"Wait, what?" Lazarus raised an eye of his, swimming over to Chloe.  
"Why?" The male squid asked, curious, and more so concerned for his friend's wellbeing.

"She said, that her stomach hurts. She wanted me to go with you, for 'my sake', or something." She stared back up at him, looking to have a mix of emotions as Lazarus stared at her, before turning around towards Octo Canyon.

"Shouldn't we go back for her, then?" He asked as he slowly began swimming through the restricted area with Chloe following behind him, although hesitantly so.

She was about to say something to his question, when suddenly, the sound of an alarm went off, which made both her and Lazarus jump, and hold each other in the process.

" _ **WARNING! UNKNOWN BEINGS PASSING THROUGH INKUISITION TERRITORY. SCANNING ENTITIES...**_ " A deep, robotic voice came on after two barriers trapped them both inside the space, causing the pair to hold onto each other even more for comfort as the alarms quieted down, the space between the doors turning a dark red color before a cyan, transparent square with grids came out from one of the doors, slowly approaching them while Chloe and Lazarus backed away from it together.

"Crap, crap, CRAP!" Lazarus yelled as it approached them, the two eventually hitting the other door behind them that was blocking their one and only escape.  
It was no use for them to escape, and the square went through the duo like a ghost.

They thought they would of been killed the second it came in contact with them, standing still like statues with barely any movement aside from their bodies trembling, hugging each other before the voice came back on.  
" _ **ALL CLEAR, ASSEMBLE HUMANOID FORMS IN THE CENTER FOR PROPER IDENTIFICATION, FOLLOWING PROTOCOL 9.**_ " The pair did what the automation asked for them, turning into their inkling forms and walking towards the center as the square with grids on it went through them once more, now a little bit faster than its slower approach. They were still creeped out by this, standing close to each other before the red lights turned a bright, welcoming green color.

" _ **SCANNING OF DNA AND IDENTIFICATION COMPLETE. WELCOME, LAZARUS SAFFIRE, SON OF HAGAR SAFFIRE, AND CHLOE TENTEL.**_ " It said before the barriers slid open, causing both Lazarus and Chloe to immediately turn back into their squid forms despite their moment of relief, flooring it to the other end as quick as possible without thinking of turning back, the latter of the two still holding onto one of Lazarus' tentacles as they did so.

"The heck was that, Laz...?!" Chloe asked Lazarus, afraid of what just happened as the male squid looked back at her, confused.

"Um, I...! I don't know, I... I swear, that didn't happen when I came to Octo Canyon today!" He frantically replied as they saw the end of the tunnel, a light coming from above the manhole's grids as they jumped out of it together, Chloe still clinging onto Lazarus in her squid form as the inkling boy landed on the ground in his humanoid form, laying on the ground on his back with Chloe next to him.

Seconds passed before Chloe eventually opened her eyes, her fears soon being replaced with that of amazement, her eyes fixated on what she saw around her.

She saw what she assumed was Octo Canyon, the tentacle formations nearby confirming this with the pods on them being visible despite the darkness, thanks to the variety of colored bulbs and spotlights around the island illuminating the area, constantly switching between a green and purple color, along with displays of advertisements welcoming them, including the other sectors being lid up with the same colors and lights as Chloe took in all the sights before her, turning into her inkling form as she stood over Lazarus.

"Wow... this is Octo Canyon?" She was at a loss for words, looking down at her partner as he looked up at her, a tired glee on their face after taking the sights around him as well.

"Yup! Heh, wow, it actually looks better during night time, to be honest..." He murmured, examining all the details around him, as well as taking in the atmosphere of the place before he heard Chloe gasp at something.

" **OH MY** **GOSH!** " She squealed at whatever she saw, which Lazarus was confused at first as he turned around to look at her direction. He thought, that she saw Octavio in the globe, and went over to check him out, considering she hadn't seen an octarian before. Instead, however...  
" **IS THAT CALLIE AND MARIE AT THE WINDOW?!** " She yelled, overjoyed as she began sprinting towards the cabin Lazarus found Ariel in, accidentally stepping on his arm as he yelped in pain, the inkling boy barely noticing the Squid Sisters inside the cabin looking at them both before they disappeared behind the walls.

"Chloe, wait!" He called out to her, grunting as Lazarus stood up, and ran after her despite the pain he was feeling as he saw her planting her face on the window to take a look on the inside, fangirling even more upon seeing the pair of idols inside before being pulled back to even analyze the inside of the building.

"Chloe, for cod's sake, calm down!" Lazarus held onto her shoulders, trying to get Chloe to contain her excitement, and keeping her still as her body continued shaking nonstop.

"The squid sisters...! I saw them, Laz! I'm finally gonna meet them!" She breathed in and out rapidly, her eyes constantly moving to the left and right, seemingly ignoring Lazarus in front of her as she continued rambling on about the duo.

Eventually, Lazarus snapped one of his fingers in front of her multiple times, trying to get her attention.

"Hey, listen to me!" After raising his voice at her, he finally managed to get her to notice him, her eyes slowly landing onto his as he sighed upon her doing so.  
" _Finally, jeez..._ " The inkling thought to himself, a relieved half-smile appearing on him despite her overexcited attitude.  
"Look, I know Callie and Marie mean a lot to you, but let's try not to make them feel awkward or annoyed around us, okay?" He requested, waiting for her to say something as she looked down, seemingly understanding how big of a nuisance she'd be to the Squid Sisters if she went into the cabin in her excessively hyped state.

"S-sorry... I-" She apologized after she had calmed down completely, embarrassed about how she acted as Lazarus patted her on the shoulder.

"It's okay, just don't freak out like that again, alright?" She simply nodded at him as he let go, a quiet whimper coming out of the inkling girl.  
"Lighten up, Chloe! Let's head inside, and see how Callie and Marie are doing, shall we?" He grinned as he looked into the window after Chloe asked that question, seeing no sign of Ariel anywhere inside, aside from the Squid Sisters and Agent 4 before looking back at his date, who now had a somewhat positive expression on her now.

"Alright! L... let's go, I guess...?" Chloe said, nervous about her first date as Lazarus moved an arm around her shoulder, to which she accepted it as he guided her to where the entrance into the cabin was.

" _Man, is this gonna be an awesome night... my first, actual date with Chloe! Thad must be so jealous of me..._ " The inkling boy thought to himself with a warm smirk, thinking about the various things he and his partner would do together as they went behind the cabin.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Got nothing to say here, really. I'm just kind of surprised, how fast I pumped this chapter out!**

 **Well, maybe I do have one thing to say. Thanks for the reviews, Dumirin! Your reviews are very much appreciated, and I will be keeping your points in mind for when I begin updating the story again after I reach Chapter 20!**

 **Check you all out later in the next chapter!**


	13. Is This a Date or Meeting?

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XIII: Is This a Date or Meeting?**_

Ariel was sitting on one of the beds in the Squid Sisters' bedroom, thanks to the pressure Marie had put on her as she swung her legs back and forth, waiting for whoever it was to enter the cabin.

"Are we really gonna let Lazarus and that annoying girlfriend of his in, Callie?" The octoling widened her eyes upon hearing that name.  
" _Lazarus?!_ " Ariel thought to herself as a smile appeared, remembering how he treated her when he found her the first time.  
" _Wait... h_ _e has a girlfriend...?_ " The octoling became bittersweet upon remembering what Marie said outside, sighing as she laid on the bed, listening to the conversation the pair of cousins had.

"Duh, yeah we are!" Callie's energetic, outgoing voice could be heard outside. "That girl looked pretty excited to see us! Maybe she's a fan of us!"  
Ariel couldn't stop thinking of Lazarus, wanting to introduce herself to his girlfriend without making things too awkward for everyone as she stood up, a confident look on her face as she slid open the door frame without a moment's notice.

Marie heard her the second she came out, turning her attention away from her cousin whom she was arguing with.  
"Ariel, what are you doing here?! Get back in-"  
"Let him in!" The octoling ordered, excited, but nervous about her decision as Marie's face became puzzled.

"W-Wait, what?! Ariel, we just agreed on-!"  
"You heard her, 'cuz!" Her cousin interrupted, firmly placing a hand on her shoulder as she flinched. "Let them in, come on!" Callie watched her along with Ariel and Agent 4 as they saw Marie turning to look out the window, seeing that their pair of visitors weren't there anymore. However, she could still hear some talking coming from outside, followed by laughter.  
"Come on, Marie! We don't wanna disappoint our fans now, would we?" Callie pressured her even further with the way she talked, most likely teasing her before Marie let out a groan, rolling her eyes at her cousin tiredly.

"But Callie, I wanna go to sleep, though..." Marie complained, pitifully so as both Callie and Ariel knew, that this was just her using her own, childish laziness as an excuse, showing impatience as the squid sister saw this.  
"Ugh, fine!" She replied, slightly irritated as she placed a hand over her face, yawning as she went over to the entrance. "Just don't say, I didn't warn you, Ariel..." The pop star mumbled, letting out an exhale before swinging the door open.

Immediately as she did so, an inkling girl around Agent 4's age with orange tentacles and ivory skin jumped inside, squeeing in excitement at the sight of the Squid Sisters as Lazarus she met from earlier could be seen outside, his hair being the same color as his girlfriend.  
The girl looked to be wearing a yellow, long-sleeved jacket with a logo on one of the breasts, covering a red shirt inside with fingerless gloves. Along with her jacket, she wore a set of black pants, blue and black-colored shoes, and some kind of pink clip-on on her hair as she fangirled at Callie and Marie.

Once Lazarus got in proper, Ariel saw him still having the same clothing he had on when they met, the same parashooter, pants, and yellow-black boots, except for the different color his tentacles had.

"Heeey! Welcome to Octo Canyon, you two!" Callie welcomed them with a warm smile while Marie stood against the door, holding it open for Lazarus as they looked at each other, recognizing the other while Agent 4's cheeks began blushing upon seeing her co-workers.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Can I have your autograph, Callie, pleeeease?!" The girl asked as she shook her hand, jumping like a kid wanting to unwrap their present during squidsmas morning as the idol giggled at her enthusiasm.

"Of course! Where do you want me to sign it?" She asked as she took out a pen from her pocket, her fan taking out her Splat Brella, presenting it to her idol.

"On the handle, on the handle!" She begged and pointed as she gave Callie her weapon, who began to sign her name on it as the girl trying to control her ecstactic behavior, wanting to see her name on her weapon before getting it back, reading the idol's name on her weapon as her eyes beamed. " **EEEEE! THANK YOU SO MUCH!** " The girl squealed as she went for a hug, obviously failing to contain her eagerness, much to Callie's surprise as she almost toppled over to the couch Agent 4 was on.

"W-wow, hey!" She laughed, trying to balance herself as the girl let go of her soon after. "I didn't know you were such a big fan! Thanks for coming over!" She played with the girl's hair before their head turned to Agent 4 on the couch, looking at her peculiarly as they took a bite from their recently-bought seanwich.

"Ariel, hey!" She called out, the octoling's eyes widening in excitement, thinking that Lazarus had talked to his date about her. She was only met with confusion, however, as well as mild disappointment once they went to the silent inkling instead, who looked utterly muddled by her presence, before waving at her shyly as they sat next to her.

Ariel continued to watch the activity in the cabin grow, feeling timid around everyone's presence as things got louder with the noise of music filling the building now.  
"Heya." Ariel jumped back upon noticing Lazarus standing next to her, whom had a carefree expression on him, as well as holding a hand hand of his out.

"O-oh, hey...!" Ariel greeted back, taken aback by his sudden appearance before looking at his hand.  
"Um..." She wondered why he held his hand out, looking back up at him, wanting to ask him something before he let out a light humph, tilting his head at her.

"You're supposed to grab, and shake it. Sort of like saying hello, y'know?" He gestured with his hand, his fingers waving towards him as Ariel realized what he wanted her to do.

"Oh, like that!" She grabbed, and shook it, feeling embarrassed for not understanding what he meant by earlier. "S-Sorry! I, I don't know how you inklings... work..." She awkwardly laughed to herself, feeling his hand letting go of hers.

"Eh, ya learn something new every day, right?" He asked, to which Ariel nodded, turning to the sound of his girlfriend fangirling over Marie, who was busy drinking from a cup of tea by the sofa, ignoring her fan as they repeatedly asked them to sign her umbrella.

"Is she THAT obsessed with them...?" Ariel asked, folding her arms as she watched the idol giving in to her demands, reluctantly signing the girl's name on the weapon.

"Yeah, that's Chloe, alright. Wanna say hi?" Lazarus nudged her over to the girl known as Chloe, which Ariel shied away from the second the aforementioned inkling looked at them.

"N-no thanks..." She backed away, looking over to Chloe, who was talking with Agent 4. "...I'm... not in the mood right now, sorry." The octoling went into the bedroom, closing the door behind her as a sigh of relief came out of her soon after.  
" _T-this is too much, I... I can't..._ " Ariel peeked out, seeing Lazarus and his friend interacting with the Squid Sisters. She couldn't help, but feel left out as she slowly stepped out once more, the inkling girl visiting completely oblivious to her presence as she was too busy with the pop stars while Lazarus turned his head at her.  
She went back inside the bedroom due to him watching her, then back out to the living room after thinking about introducing herself, only to step back in out of fear. It was almost as though she was being pulled by two separate entities. Ariel didn't know what to do, her mind being filled with conflict as she finally saw Chloe notice her after peeking out again, pulling herself back inside the bedroom.  
" _Oh no, she saw me, she saw me!_ " Ariel panicked as she heard the conversation outside go quiet, along with a question too muffled for her to hear.

She heard footsteps approaching the door.  
Although she felt the same dreadful feeling as before, it wasn't as extreme as the door was pulled open, followed by a gasp as Chloe stood there, between the living room and the bedroom, looking shocked with her discovery of Ariel.

"'ey, found something interesting, Chloe?!" She heard Lazarus from outside call out to his girlfriend, his shape eventually coming into view.

The girls stared at each other awkwardly, their feet being glued to the floor as Chloe seemed to analyze her from top to bottom.

"Y-yeah...!" The girl was taken aback by her discovery, letting out a laugh of nervousness while taking a step back towards Lazarus, glancing over at him at the others behind her. "Laz, you didn't tell me an octoling lived here!" She exclaimed to him, looking back at Ariel as she took a slow, careful step towards the octoling after looking at her for a while.

The closer Chloe got, the more apparent Ariel's whimpers became as her cheeks began to darken and warm up, her face displaying fear and anxiousness of the inkling as they apparently saw this, their expression changing into that of confusion as the inkling stood still once more.

"G... get away from me, please!" Ariel requested, trying to raise her voice the best she could in an attempt to try to sound threatening as possible.

"Huh?! W-what did I do?!" Chloe stuttered, taking another step forward as Ariel backed away from her, the two keeping an eye on each other as Ariel squeaked as she sat on the one of the beds' corners, hiding behind a pillow in her octopus form.  
Thankfully, before things could get any more awkward between the two, Lazarus stepped inside, standing between them.

"Okay, you two! Let's try not to make this weird, alright?!" He looked over to Ariel, who was peeking from behind her hiding spot before looking at Chloe and the Squid Sisters, who stood in front of the entrance, the former of the two looking puzzled.  
"Can you leave me and Chloe alone for a second?" Lazarus asked the pair, who did as he requested despite Marie's protests as Callie shut the bedroom door, leaving the two inklings and the octoling alone in the room together.

A moment of stillness hung in the air, none of the three inside the bedroom exchanging a word before Lazarus humphed at them as he saw Ariel slowly turning into her humanoid form.

"Well? Are you two gonna say something, or what?" He sat on the bed Ariel was on, which she responded with nothing but silence while Chloe carefully took a step towards Lazarus and the octoling.

"I, I didn't mean to scare you, or anything!" Chloe said as she walked towards Ariel, who looked at Lazarus and his girlfriend with a terrified expression.

"G-go away!" Ariel raised her voice, the inkling girl momentarily stopping in her tracks before resuming what she did earlier. "P-please! I'll do anything, j... just don't send me to the Inkuisition! Anything, but them!" Her body began to tremble as Chloe was now standing just a few centimeters from Ariel, looking at Lazarus with a mix of confusion and concern for the red-tentacled girl before her.

"Ariel, **wake up!** " He snapped his fingers, seemingly grabbing her attention. "She's not a part of those guys, calm your tentacles!" The inkling boy comforted her, who finally stopped shivering after realizing what he was saying was true. She noticed, that the inkling Lazarus was accompanying with looked more interested in knowing her, rather than determined to take her away to the organization she feared and hated so much.

"She's... not with them?" Ariel mumbled, curious, but wary around Chloe's presence as her grip on the fabric loosened.

"With who?" Chloe asked as she took turns looking at Lazarus and Ariel, wondering whom they were talking about. She heard the octoling having gone quiet, not saying an ounce of a word to her or Lazarus, let alone making any kind of body movement aside from slow, quaky breathing.

"Ariel?" Lazarus faced her, placing his hands on her shoulders as she simply stared down on the bed's sheet.

"You don't wanna know... you don't..." Ariel responded quietly, whimpering as she looked down at her pillow, hugging it to herself.

"Laz, why is she so scared?" Chloe asked him quietly, who was watching Ariel until he looked at his date, his expression becoming serious as he did so.

"Lemme explain, Chloe..." He sighed, sitting down against the wall as both girls listened.

* * *

 _ **Minutes later...**_

"So that's why you're scared?" The inkling girl asked after Lazarus had explained everything to her, turning her eyes to Ariel. She was interested, but unnerved by the Inkuisition's methods as Ariel nodded silently, having listened to his explanation.

"You see, Chloe?" Lazarus said, folding his arms as he sat next to the octoling. "Those Inkuisition folk force 'em to work, deny 'em access to Inkopolis, and brainwash octarians that don't follow their rules." He sat up, his eyes piercing into Chloe's like knives, his expression having refused to change since his explanation. "And worst of all, my mom works those people. Twisted, don'tcha think?" He raised an eyebrow as he began looking around for something in the room. What it was, Chloe wasn't sure of, wanting to answer his question before she and the others heard knocking on the door.

"Hey, can I come in, you three?" Callie could be heard outside, waiting for them to answer her.

"Yeah, come on in!" Lazarus responded as the pop star slid open the wall separating her and the inklings, stepping inside as she did so.

"Hey! I just wanted to check, if Ariel's okay!" She had an optimistic look on her as the inklings could see Ariel smiling at her presence, looking less nervous with the squid sister inside.

"Ah, I, I'm fine, thank you..." She said something to herself that everyone didn't hear, hiding herself from everyone behind the blanket.

"Splat-tastic to hear, Ariel! I hope they're not doing anything bad..." Callie turned to look at the young couple, who looked at her with reassuring looks. "...oh! Do you two need anything, by the way?" Lazarus perked up at her question as she looked at him and Chloe.

"Yeah, actually!" He answered, getting up from the bed. "Could I borrow your laptop real quick? Gotta show Chloe something." He went out with her, leaving his date and the octoling behind in the room together.

Ariel didn't look at Chloe from the set of pillows she was hiding behind, the pair sharing an awkward silence with each other before one of the two broke it.

"Hey..." Chloe cooed as she slowly made her way to Ariel, the octoling's trembling growing as she sat next to her. "Your name's Ariel, right?" Shed asked her, their voice sounding as smooth as silk as Ariel's shaking stopped.

"Y... yeah..." She answered quietly, crawling towards her before turning into her humanoid form, her face expressing nothing but terror. "Y-you're Chloe... r-right?" She asked, referring to the name Lazarus used for her.  
"That's me, alright!" She announced, placing a hand on the octoling's shoulder as they jumped, not expecting this response from the inkling. And, just like what Lazarus did, she stuck a hand out to her. "I'm SO glad to finally meet an octoling that isn't Marina!" Ariel wanted to make a good first impression by grabbing, and shaking it before Lazarus came back into the bedroom with a laptop in hand, cutting their little moment off before she could shake the inkling's hand.

"Here, take a look at this, Chloe." He said as the boy sat next to his date, having opened up the camera system program he and Ariel had checked earlier today.

Compared to last time, things seem to have quieted down at Cephalon HQ, now that there were some inklings way past his and Chloe's age watching over the octarians working down there. Immediately, one thing struck Lazarus and Ariel as shocking while Chloe just watched, unphased.

In the center where the riot had taken place at, there were several pools of magenta ink being washed up octarians and octolings alike, the workers themselves looking outright terrified of the inklings surveying them while the octolings wearing the shades stood next to the inklings like soulless servants, holding chargers, and aiming at the octarians.

"So this is where the octarians work?" Chloe asked, interested as everyone kept watching while Ariel and Lazarus looking mortified of what the camera was showing.

"Holy carp..." Lazarus couldn't come up with a coherent sentence as he saw an octoling that wasn't hypnotized huddled near a wall with another, seeing the older of the two hugging her sister for comfort while Ariel surveyed some of the octarians mopping the floor getting shouted at.  
"Laz? Ariel...?" Chloe looked at them, confused by their reaction before noticing what they saw next. One of the inklings that were there set their sights on the octolings in the corner, as well as a few octarians trying to help out the duo, looking just as devastated as her. The inkling didn't seem to care one bit about their safety as they began walking down the flight of stairs towards them.

"T... they're... they're cleaning up...!" The boy felt sick as he continued watching this play out, a feeling of complete and utter shock overwhelming him as everyone on screen with the exceptions of the inklings and mind-controlled octolings kept cleaning the purple-colored mess shown on screen, the workers repeatedly looking up at the guards above them.

This kept going for a while before Lazarus eventually couldn't stand watching the feed after the octolings in the corner were pulled out by one of the guards, standing up from the bed as Ariel began welling up in tears.  
"What the shell is he doing?!" Chloe asked, shocked by the footage of the younger octoling snapping back at the inkling before being forced to clean it up at gunpoint for merely yelling at them, being given nothing more than a mop and a bucket as the octarians that tried comforting the two were escorted to continue their jobs along with her sister before the inkling boy walked out the room.

He looked back at them as Chloe didn't say a word to him leaving, obviously taking in all the sights on the feed as Lazarus turned his attention to the Squid Sisters and Agent 4 instead, who looked at him with initial, carefree expressions before noticing the expression his face.

"Lazarus?" Marie was the exception to the three, however. She stared at him nonchalantly, the inkling boy feeling his body starting to shake as he stared at them. "Hellooo? Seriously, don't tell me, that you didn't splat yourself watching a horror movie..." She rolled her eyes, tired before her annoyance was replaced with a bit of worry, noticing Lazarus' body and eye language as they set on her cousin and Agent 4, before they set on her again.

"M... Marie...?" He finally said after a gulp, his voice filled with shock and mortification as the pop star got up from her seat after realizing

"Hey, everything alright?" She went over to him, wondering what could be troubling him.

"...c-c-could we talk outside real quick?" He glanced at the entrance behind him, feeling as though he needed some fresh air after what he saw.

"Sure...?" The idol replied awkwardly, walking over to the door, and opening the entrance, allowing both herself and her fan to step out of the cabin together as she put her kimono on, taking her parasol with her.

* * *

The feeling of the mild, cold wind made Lazarus' nausea go away upon him inhaling the air around him, letting out an exhale soon after as he and Marie began making their way towards where the kettles were.

"You looked a bit troubled back there, Lazarus. Is something wrong?" The squid sister asked as they went under the tunnel together, which had purple and green lights coloring it.  
He didn't say anything, which Marie treated with silence, along with a humph as well until they had reached the construction site for the attraction, which still looked to be in early development stages due to platforms, tools, cranes, as well as the look of the area.

"I assume, you're-"  
"Why aren't you helping them?" He suddenly replied back, albeit shakily so as Marie looked at him, confused.

"Helping who?" Marie raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was talking about as he faced her.

"Helping everyone at Cephalon HQ..." He stared her down, his face filled with disgust and anger as Marie's eyes widened. She knew at that moment, that he found something that only she and Ariel know about.

"Um... we're helping them the best we can, Lazarus! We... we just didn't realize the situation was this bad until now!" She explained, obviously trying to cover herself up, failing miserably so due to the half-smile she gave before Lazarus' eyelids lowered, annoyed at her attempt at hiding this from him.

"Don't act like you didn't know what's happening down there, Marie!" He answered as they made it to near the edge of the platform, the inkling boy tired of the idol's excuses as her smile disappeared. "I know I'm a big fan of you and Callie, but come on! You of all inklings should know, that the octarians are miserable, thanks to those 'Inkuisition' people you're working for!" He continued as the squid sister stepped back, having fallen quiet as she stared, and listened at the fan that adored her so much ranting at her.

"I-I know that, but-!" Marie stuttered, trying her best to form a coherent sentence as the boy stood in front of her, arms folded.

"But what?! Stop lying to me, and tell me what's wrong!" He cut her off, much to her inconvenience. "Say something already, you deadbeat!" He was on the verge of yelling right at her face, but refused as she stood still, just staring at him in shock until a quaking exhale came out, the squid sister looking defeated.

"I... I just don't trust those octarians, Lazarus..." The idol looked down as Lazarus humphed, looking out to the distance where Inkopolis was.

"Is that why they're trapped in that hellhole, then?" He walked towards the edge, barely catching a glimpse of the large, bright dome below him and the others.

"No, you know why?!" Marie suddenly raised her voice, her eyebrows furrowing as she stepped towards Lazarus, much to his bewilderment. "Because they kidnapped my cousin, made her wear that... stupid outfit of theirs, and took her from me and her parents! All so she could be used as an object for Octavio's own desires!" Compared to his method, the pop star cut him off before he could say anything, outright yelling at him towards the end of her sentence, much to the inkling's discomfort as she was now standing right in front of him. "And don't you DARE yell at me like that again, is that clear?!" He held an arm in front of himself, afraid of the furious idol while Marie stared him down with her golden, glowing eyes, waiting for an answer from him.

Eventually, she groaned at him for giving her the silent treatment instead of bawling on the ground like last time, storming back towards the cabin afterwards, saying something that he couldn't hear.  
He watched her disappear from his sight, feeling bad for angering her, as well as concerned for what she was going to do next as he followed the squid sister back to the cabin, hearing the distant sound of a door being slammed shut.

* * *

Upon opening the door to the cabin, Lazarus saw, that Ariel and Chloe were forced out of the bedroom by the pop star he had angered, much to their, along with Callie's confusion.

"Get out! GET OUT!" Marie commanded inside as his date and the octoling were kicked out, followed by her sealing herself away from everyone with a click coming from the door to the bedroom.

"Marie, what the heck?!" Chloe complained, looking at the door separating the bedroom and the one she and everyone else was in. "Let me in! I wanna see what's happening there!" She banged on the wall, only to get no response as Callie sprinted over to them.

"What happened, Chloe?!" She asked, hearing the sound of the laptop inside being slammed down.

"Marie kicked us out, Callie! We weren't done looking at through the cameras!" The inkling answered, giving the door another bang as Callie stopped her before a hole could be tore open.

"Hey, cut that out!" Callie begged, which caused her fan to pause midway with a punch. "I don't know what you're talking about, Chloe, but please! At least let me try to talk to Marie!" Chloe managed to calm herself down, nodding understandably as she stepped back, allowing the idol to take care of this.  
"Marie?" Callie knocked on the door lightly. "Can you give our fan my laptop back? She wasn't done with it!" Callie tried sliding the door open, only to be perplexed as it didn't move.  
She tried again, only to be met with the same results as she looked at it in disbelief. "Did you seriously just lock yourself in there, Marie?!" Callie asked, raising her voice slightly. "Let me in!" Her cousin demanded, knocking on the door like Chloe did, repeatedly so for about ten seconds or so, getting no response from her cousin as everyone looked at each other, before Callie set her eyes on Lazarus, who was watching all this.

"What did you do, Lazarus...?" Her voice tranquilized, questioning him as everyone turned their heads to him.

"What do you mean?! I only told her, what that shellhole down there looked like, and to stop lying to me, nothing more!" He explained, standing next to Chloe as the squid sister listened.

"Shellhole? Down there? You mean Cephalon HQ?" The idol looked at him seriously, along with a sprinkle of curiosity as Lazarus nodded at her question.

"Yeah, you don't believe me?! She began flipping out after I told her what Chloe and I saw, saying stuff like how she doesn't trust the octarians, how they used you..." Lazarus eyed Ariel, who seemed to get a bit timid at him calling out her species. "...as well as trying to lie to my face about not knowing how miserable the octarians are! Just because I told her what we all saw on that camera system!" Just as he finished his explanation, everyone became quiet as they heard something in the room, sounding like someone was on the verge of tears with sniffs and chokes.

Everyone assumed, that the noise came from Marie, considering she was the only one in the bedroom that could make that kind of noise before they heard her say something after a thump within. It was too muffled for everyone to hear as Callie went over to the door.

"Marie...?" Callie mumbled, gently knocking one more time as everyone around her began to hear some soft, quiet sobbing from within. "...are you okay in there?"

"We should go, Laz..." His date whispered, wondering if Callie and Marie should be left alone for the night.

"Should we...? But what about-" Lazarus' question was answered for him as he was pulled outside by Chloe. The two could hear Callie begging for them to come back and help, desperate in her voice as Chloe glanced over to the cabin, understandingly worried as she let go of her date upon reaching the manhole.

"Chloe, I... I didn't mean it to happen like this, Marie just-!"  
"Laz!" She stopped him as the tempo in his voice increased, noticing the panic on his face as he looked at her. "I know, that you didn't mean anything bad, and that's okay, alright?" Chloe took a step towards him, a reassuring expression on her face as she held one of his hands.

"Okay?!" He questioned, letting go of her. "I made one of the squid sisters angry at us, and you're saying it's okay?! How is that OKAY, Chloe?!" Lazarus shrugged his arms at her, sweating somewhat from his forehead.

"It's okay, because we came here at...! Wait..." She paused to whip out her phone, taking a look at the time on it as Lazarus wanted to crack a joke to humor himself, but couldn't as he glanced over to the cabin, noticing Agent 4 staring at them, sternly so as they walked over to him and his date. "...we came here at midnight, Lazarus! We could of instead just waited for... tomorrow...?" Her voice became quiet upon spotting their freelancer walking up to them, not taking their gaze off the two as Lazarus turned around to face her once noticing the change in Chloe's expression.

"Agent 4?" Lazarus blurted out tiredly as he stared at her, wondering why she'd check up on them instead of helping Callie.  
"W... what're you doing here? Aren't you supposed help the Squid Sisters and Ariel?" He said as Agent 4 looked at him, unsure of the inkling's question before pulling out her notepad, holding a pen along with it. It seemed almost devoid of any pages, only looking to have about 3 or 2 more of them left as she clicked on her pen, and began writing her message on it.

The pair of inklings waited for her to finish her message as she handed the paper over to Lazarus.

" _Hey_ _, I need you two here tomorrow. There's something I want you and Chloe to see, and do for Ariel._ " Her message said as she already prepared writing her answer to his question.

"Do what?" Lazarus asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity as the agent before him remained silent, handing her second-to-last page over once she finished her message.

" _I'll tell you when you and Chloe get here tomorrow. Good night._ " She handed the message over as the two visitors looked at each other, before looking back at Agent 4 as they saw her writing her last note before running out of paper after ripping it out, crumbling it as she looked up, tired, but had a hint of a small, drowsy smile on her as she went back to the cabin after tossing the last page to them.

" _Oh, and sorry for my behavior during our salmon run together, Lazarus._ " It said after the inkling unfolded the paper. Despite his tired attitude, he couldn't help, but smile a little at the message.  
He soon began to feel his eyes becoming heavy, however, yawning as he turned to his date behind him.

"Getting tired, Laz?" She asked, bearing a sleepy expression on her face.

"Yeah... let's head back, Chloe..." He said, his voice quiet and weary as the two entered the manhole together, heading back to their apartments in Inkopolis.


	14. Myxobolus

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XIV: Myxobolus**_

A yawn came out of Lazarus as he woke up from his slumber, having slept for almost the entire morning as he decided to check the time after stretching his arms and legs a little, noticing, that it read 11:39 in the morning. His eyes woke up a bit after he rubbed them.

" _Damn, did I sleep that long?_ " He asked himself after managing to sit up, stretching his limbs out once more as he felt his body wanting to go back to sleep, while his conscious refused to until he decided on getting out of his bed instead of going back to sleep, looking at the pile of clothes he tossed onto the ground last night with the exception of his boxers and shirt.

The lukewarm smell of the room made the inkling head over to the window, pulling up the blinds, and opening it up before deciding to start his day off with some delicious breakfast with a sandwich containing salted anchovies, salmon, and some slices of cucumber that he left out for a salad that he began working on after leaving his bedroom.

Not long after, he managed to finish making his delicacy for the morning, examining some of its details as he began to feast on it. The taste felt just as great as it did the first time he made a sandwich like this, which made him go for another bite the moment he swallowed his first lump.

As he did so, he decided to check his phone, heading to the message app before tapping Chloe's name.

He felt like shooting her a message, tapping the area where ones message is written as he began texting her.

" _Hey Chloe. Sorry if I woke you up, have to remind you about something._ " He waited for his message to be forwarded to her, when suddenly, his phone began to buzz for a moment, followed by the name of Thaddeus showing up.

He stared at the name for a while, wondering what his brother wanted before deciding to answer him, tapping the green icon before placing it on one of his ears.

"Yo, morning, bro." He began the conversation, heading over to the fridge to get himself something to drink.

"Morning to you too, Laz!" An audible yawn came from his end, followed by a groan. "What's up? You doing anything interesting?" His brother's voice came back, sounding like he had just woken up from his sleep.

"Not really, just got up a few minutes ago, got myself some breakfast..." He said as he poured some of the contents into his cup, placing the carton back into the fridge afterward.

"Really? Me too." His brother chuckled, letting out melody composed of his yawns as Lazarus smiled.

"Sounds like you're happy 'n all that, Thad! You feeling any better since yesterday?" He wondered, wanting to know if his brother still hadn't forgotten about their little argument they had.

"Yeah, don't sweat about our argument too much, bro." The inkling was relieved to hear this, knowing that what happened between them in the square didn't bother him too much. "That's besides the point, anyways. I wanted to call you for a reason, actually." Lazarus raised an eyebrow, curious.

"And that is...?" His brother remained awfully silent on the phone for a while, until...  
"It's about mom..." He said, his voice quiet and still before Lazarus' phone dinged, noticing a new message from Chloe.

"What about her?" He tapped on Chloe's message, being taken to the messenger application.

"I can't talk about it now..." His brother replied, still whispering, in a more careful manner now before he continued. "I wanna talk about this at the manhole near Ammo Knights. Be there at 12, got it?" Lazarus looked at the time on his phone. He realized, that he'd only have 10 minutes to spare as Chloe's message came up.

"Can't we meet there at like, 12:30 or something, instead? I still gotta brush my teeth and all that." Lazarus responded, raising an eyebrow as he read the message Chloe had sent him.

" _It's okay, Laz~ What is it?_ " Her message said as Lazarus began typing his in.

"Fine, sure thing..." Thaddeus responded, a bit irritated. "Could always get myself a burger or somethin' while I'm waitin'." Both brothers remained quiet as Lazarus continued texting Chloe, an awkward silence filling the conversation the two had.

"Bro? You there?" Thaddeus asked on the other end, confused.  
"Y-yeah! Just busy... finishing my breakfast, that's all." Lazarus looked at his message he had written in, trying his best to cover up what he really was doing.  
" _I'm heading back to Octo Canyon. You feel like tagging along?_ " It said as he sent it.

"Sounds like you're doin' somethin' else, bro. You watching some-"  
"I'M NOT!" The inkling yelled, taking the phone off his ear. "Goodbye, I'll see you at the Square with Chloe!" Lazarus finished, heavily blushing before hanging up on his brother. Just as he did so, however, his eyes widened upon realizing what he said, right before getting Chloe's response.  
" _Damn it, you idiot!_ " His subconscious told him, before his eyes were drawn to the message Chloe had sent him. What it said, caused his irritation to go away the second he read it.

" _Can't, Lily's feeling sick. Soz. :(_ " He had his eyes glued to the message. His irritation was now that of concern, and the message wasn't some kind of joke, either. Lily's behavior from last night confirmed, that there was something wrong with her, the inkling immediately shooting a message back to Chloe after taking in the message.

" _She's sick?_ " He asked her as he finished his meal, proceeding to drink the remains from his cup before getting a reply from her.

" _Yeah,_ _Some kind of stomachache. She's sweating a lot, too._ " From the description alone, Lazarus already assumed, that it was just a cold she had caught, nothing too big as he placed the plate and cup onto the counter.

" _M_ _ind if I come over, Chloe?_ " He asked her as he went to the bathroom to brush his teeth, grabbing his purple and black-colored toothbrush, as well as putting a small line of paste on it.

" _Lily says yeah. Would be great to have you here._ " Her message said as he looked back at himself in the mirror, making sure to scrub each and every one of his teeth before he spat the white paste out with a look of confidence on his face, grabbing his phone once more.

" _Alright, I'll see you in a minute or two._ " He replied before closing his phone, heading over to the front entrance to put on his gear for today. For today, he decided to wear some headphones, a chilly mountain coat due to the potential winds at Octo Canyon, as well as a pair of blue and black-colored squidkids before he left his apartment, locking the door behind him.

He walked down the corridor, reaching the entrance to Chloe and Lily's apartment before knocking on the door. He could hear some footsteps from within, stopping right in front of the entrance seconds later. Lazarus waited, until the door was opened as Chloe came into view, happy to see him as he smiled at her.

"Hey, Laz!" She greeted him, looking to be somewhat tired, thanks to her tentacles being untied, as well as wearing nothing, but a plain, white t-shirt along with short, black pants.

"'ey, Chloe! How's Lily holding?" He asked as he hugged her, taking a peek inside the apartment.

"Not so well, but whatever! Come on in!" She stepped back, allowing him to step inside while he looked at where their living room was, spotting Lily eating from what looked to be a bowl of soup by a table near the television. "Lily, Lazarus is here!" Chloe announced his presence, followed by Lily looking at them. Her expression being just as tired, if not, more so than Chloe's along with a sick look on her face.

"Oh... hey, Lazarus..." Lily smiled weakly at him, coughing out a bit of the soup as Chloe ran over to her.

"Hey, you don't look so good..." Lazarus walked over to her, even more concerned than he previously was as he could now smell the odor and sweat coming from Lily.

"Yeah, I know..." Lily answered, sighing before letting out another series of coughs, taking another spoonful from her soup afterward.

"You weren't kidding with that headache last night, heh..." He folded his arms as he sat next to Chloe, looking over to her friend as they rubbed their head, resting their head on a pillow.

"You don't have to point out the obvious, Lazarus..." She responded, annoyance emanating from her tone as she finished her bowl while Chloe was watching her, an arm over her shoulder. The television was turned on, displaying a live action program that Lazarus wasn't interested in, looking at his phone instead as he saw the time. He still had some to spare before he had to go meet up with Thaddeus at the square as he put it back in his pocket.

"How're you feeling, Lil?" Lazarus inquired, to which she responded with a tired sigh.

"Not good..." She clutched her stomach, tilting her head towards him and Chloe. "...I think, one of those salmonids bit me during our shift yesterday..." She burped, her face turning pale as she looked like she was about to throw up, covering her mouth as she did so.

"Lily?!" He and Chloe saw her stand up from the sofa, only to fall onto her knees as she began to burp multiple times in a row, gripping onto the edge of the couch. Lazarus analyzed her, noticing a bite mark on her back leg, noticing she was drooling an excessive amount of greenish-orange ink.

"Lily, are you-?!" She noticed the slimy, green liquid drooling out of Lily's mouth, the ink dropping onto the floor as her friend gagged. "LILY!" She yelled, running to look for a nearby trash can in the kitchen as Lily retched, followed by her throwing up some of her contents onto the floor. A mix of the soup coming out along with some of the ink.  
"LILY, HOLD IT BACK! HOLD IT!" Lazarus ordered as a foul stench began to fill the air, smelling like stomach acid mixed with rotten food as Lily covered her mouth, tears filling her eyes before she vomited again before Chloe came back, holding a black, plastic bag.

"Everything's gonna be okay, Lily! Come on!" Chloe and Lazarus went over, helping her up to her feet as Lily coughed out some of the liquid still in her mouth, wiping it off her as she and her friends walked over to the bathroom together.

"Oh cod, this is not good!" Lazarus began to panic, scrambling through his phone's contact list while Chloe was supported Lily, who ran, and threw up once more into the toilet the second it came into view. "I'm calling Mr. Grizz! See if he's got something for this stuff!" He tapped his employer's name, waiting for an answer from him while Chloe was taking care of Lily. It took a few rings, before the other end was eventually picked up.

" _ **Hello, this is Mr. G-**_ "  
"Hey, Mr. Grizz?! This is Lazarus!" He frantically cut him off, running over to Lily and Chloe as the former of the two girls was seen holding back her tears.

" _ **'ey, 'ey, wow, slow down there for a sec, kid! Why so quick to the point this morning?!**_ " His boss asked, mildly irritated in his tone as Lazarus looked at the duo of girls.

"I don't have time for this, sir! Lily's sick, and she needs help, now!" He answered as he watched Lily clutch her stomach, sitting on the floor as Chloe went to find a set of napkins for her.

" _ **Sick?! What do you mean, sick?!**_ " Mr. Grizz questioned on the other end, his previous attitude having been replaced with concern.

"S-She told me, that..." He was panicking too much, not knowing how to re-iterate her explanation. "...that... I, I-!"

" _ **KID.**_ " Mr. Grizz's voice came back, demanding, but devoid of anger in his tone as Lazarus stopped." _ **...take a few deep breaths, calm yourself, and tell me what's goin' on there, alright?**_ " Lazarus did what he was told, deeply inhaling and exhaling before he felt his composure coming back, all the while his supervisor was helping him calm down.

"...R-right, sorry about that, boss..." The inkling apologized, clutching both hands onto his phone. "...a-anyways, Lily said, that... that she was bitten by one of those salmonids at the spawning grounds during our shift yesterday, and... and she's been having this headache, and stomachache since last night! Do you have some kind of thing that can fix this?!" Lazarus cringed as he heard Lily cry and throw up a bit once more, feeling pity and concern over his friend as Chloe came back.

As though Mr. Grizz could hear her throwing up as well, he mumbled something on the other end to himself that Lazarus couldn't hear. " _ **I do! Get 'ere to Grizzco Industries at once, I might have somethin' that'll fix 'er problem!**_ " He said, worried in his tone as Lazarus perked his head towards the door separating the bathroom and the rest of the apartment.

"Got it! I'll see you in 5 minutes!" He immediately turned to look at the girls after hanging up on his employer, noticing Lily's tentacle color losing its saturation as hints of snot dripped out of her nose. "I'll be right back, you two! Gonna get something that'll help!" He ran out of the bathroom to the front entrance, not caring about closing the door behind him as he rushed down the stairs to the complex's entrance.

* * *

The inkling boy dashed down the street to the square, noticing dozens of others inklings looking up at the screen as the latest news from Off the Hook was displayed. He didn't have time to listen to them, only caring about getting what he needed from Mr. Grizz as he arrived to the Grizzco Industries entrance.

As though he was expected, the gates opened for him as Lazarus stepped inside, sweating profusely from all the running before hearing the entrance shut itself behind him, just the moment he passed under them.

" **'ey there, Lazarus.** " The inkling turned to look at the statue the voice emanated from, noticing a small bottle next to it with what looked to be pills in them.

"Hey, boss! This is the stuff right here?" He quickly grabbed it after wiping some of the sweat from his forehead, examining the contents inside before reading the label plastered onto the canister.

" **Sure is. This is guaranteed to help your friend with her illness for the next couple of days.** " Without hesitation, Lazarus put the medicine in his coat's pocket, looking back at the radio with a smile.

"Cool! Thanks, Mr. Grizz!" He excitedly began running to the front entrance, only to stop in his tracks as a sudden wave of curiosity came over him, beginning to question what was actually inside the bottle before popping it open, immediately being treated to a peculiar smell of something that smelled like salt with a mixture of sweetness to it.

He looked, and headed back to the radio with a curious look on him. "Um, sir?" He asked, hearing his employer emitting a sigh along with a: " **What is it?** ", sounding tired.

"What are these? It... smells kinda weird..." He took one of the pills out from the bottle. It looked transparent, and had an orange-looking color to it along with the smell accompanying it.

" **Oh, shoulda mentioned it earlier, but those are Anti-myxobolus pills, made to help against the Myxobolus disease spread by salmonids.** " Hearing this information, a spark of interest came to Lazarus as he found nearby chair, sitting on it.

"Myxobolus disease?" He raised an eyebrow, staring at the radio while Mr. Grizz on the other end remained quiet. The inkling was about to ask him if he was there, only to be cut off momentarily beforehand.

" **Never 'eard of it before, kid?** " Mr. Grizz asked, dumbfounded by Lazarus' lack of knowledge.

"Not really, first time I've actually heard of it." Lazarus smiled awkwardly, gathering a hum from his boss as the sound of a drawer being pulled open was heard, followed by paper being sorted through.  
Mr. Grizz appeared to be thoughtful in his voice, Lazarus analyzing the lobby around him as he admired the golden eggs he and his co-workers have collected from yesterday. " **Say, ya wouldn't mind learnin' a little 'bout it, right?** " The boy heard a grunt come from the radio, followed by a gruff cough.

After thinking for a while, Lazarus reached his conclusion.  
"Sure, why not?" The inkling boy answered with a smile, wanting to know a little about the disease as he placed the bottle of pills back into his coat.

" **Hrmph! A-Are you serious?!** " His superior's voice resonated with excitement, although, not to the same degree as when Mr. Grizz yells at him and his friends to collect the golden eggs like a raving lunatic. Instead, it sounded like he was actually happy for once as Lazarus nodded along with a hum, still interested in learning about the salmonids.  
" **T-that's great!** " Mr. Grizz laughed a bit, sounding nervous on the other end, almost as though he was a teacher educating someone for the first time. " **...Well, um... I guess** **for starters, it usually ain't too common for inklings to catch it these days. Before we begin, do you know those outfits you and everyone else are given before a shift?** " Lazarus looked over to the Grizzco outfits he usually wore during his salmon runs, then back at the radio.

"Yeah, what about them?" He raised an eyebrow, curious about Mr. Grizz's question as his boss fumbled over his words a bit.

" **There's a reason why those overalls, gloves and boots are made out of strong, elastic rubber, and not anything else, kid. And that is to prevent those salmonids from sinkin' their teeth into your skin, and injectin' any sort of poison they might be carrying. Usually, they were made with silk and some sturdy metal, but I had to redesign 'em after several complaints I got from some of my employees' families, who were affected by the weight of the outfit, as well as several diseases they had gotten.** " The inkling listened to each, and every word that came out of his supervisor's voice, wanting to learn even more about the salmonids that he had been tasked with taking care of since the day he began working at Grizzco, as well as learning about his company's history. Any other inkling at his age would usually just walk away, not wanting to be educated and learn a little, only caring about playing a game of Turf Wars, Ranked Battles, or just looking at their phone, texting, sharing their stories on social media, or playing games on it.

"Go on..." He requested after hearing nothing but radio silence, being all ears at what Mr. Grizz explained to him about.

" **Right, glad you're still there. While the new outfits certainly help decrease the possibility of getting affected by the illness, there's still a chance for one of those freaks to use their teeth instead of usin' their weapons like usual. And, if you aren't wearin' that outfit, or your suit's badly damaged as those teeth chomp through your skin... Well...** " Mr. Grizz paused for a moment. A single, morbid chuckle came from him as Lazarus' interest steadily turned into fear, the way his employer laughed a bit at the disease made him feel afraid of him, wondering if he actually found the disease funny in some kind of sick, twisted way.

"Um, sir...?" Lazarus interrupted, inciting a sound of interest from him.  
" **Hm? Oh, yeah,** **what is it?** " Mr. Grizz asked, curious.  
"Y-You're kind of making me a bit uncomfortable..." He paused, looking away from the statue.

" **Oh, sorry about that, kid. Didn't mean ta scare ya.** " His supervisor assured him, waiting for Lazarus to look back at the device he talked from. " **Anyways** **,** **let's get back to what we were talkin' about. When you** **get infected with the Myxo flu, which, I'll remind you, is an infection that** _ **MUST**_ **be treated as soon as possible, nothin' will really happen during the first few hours or so, until the day after. That's when the effects start showin' up, the symptoms includin': Migraines, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fatigue, dehydration, excessive sweating, loss of color, difficulty with breathing, unconsciousness, and, in the most severe cases: Becoming comatose, mentally insane, displaying violent behavior, lung failure, heart failure, respiratory failure, and worst of all: _Death._** " That last symptom, along with the dark, brooding delivery in Mr. Grizz's tone caused a shiver to be sent up Lazarus' back as he gulped, picturing Chloe nearby crying over an ink puddle along with several clothes in it as he was still in his seat, nervously so as he stared at the scene his subconscious made.

"W-wait, you're saying, that... this illness, it... it can kill someone...!?" Fear overwhelmed him as he continued imagining the scene of Chloe next to him, almost feeling her tears and arms wrapping around him as his imaginary love interest hugged him for comfort.

" **Yes, but thankfully, that's rarely ever happened.** " Mr. Grizz snapped him out of his thoughts with his change of tone, causing the inkling to focus his eyes on the radio once more as the imaginary Chloe and the puddle of ink vanished. " **If you didn't know, it takes a while for the disease to get into its later stages within an inkling, but it must be treated ASAP once signs of it show up. Which, I may remind you, is why you should get going now, and give those pills to your co-worker, NOW.** " Lazarus realized this, turning his head to face the front entrance as he did what his employer told him, getting up from the chair.

"G-Got it! Thanks again for the medicine, boss!" The inkling waved at the statue before running towards the gate. He was joyful, happy to get something that would fix Lily's current predicament along with learning something new as he left the Grizzco building.

* * *

Immediately as he stepped out, the gates behind Lazarus closed by themselves, the inkling being treated to the sound of the urban city and its inhabitants, inhaling the fresh, city air around him before letting it out.

" _Alright, Lazarus, now to just get back to the apartment complex, and-_ " He suddenly stopped, surprised at what he saw.

"Hey, bro!" Standing by the manhole near Ammo Knights with their arms and legs crossed, was his brother, having seen him walk out of the Grizzco building. Just like the last time Lazarus saw him, he was wearing the same inky rider, along with his aviators on his forehead. The only difference being the shoes, which were a pair of icy down ones.

"Thaddeus?!" Lazarus' eyes widened, happy to see him as he walked up to him, the two brothers doing their usual signature greeting, grabbing each other's hands, arm wrestling a bit with each other. "Dude, what are you doing here?! I-!" The younger of the two asked as he let go, gobsmacked by his sibling's sudden appearance until he remembered the time they were supposed to meet.

"Kinda wanna ask the same question to you, lil' bro. Saw you enterin' the Grizzco building from Headspace earlier." He rested on the building's wall, looking at Lazarus suspiciously while his brother looked at the direction to his apartment complex.

"Oh! Well, I... just came to get some stuff for Lily, she's become sick after yesterday's shift." He began walking towards the building, telling his brother through body language to follow him as he did so, looking interested.

"Wait, she's sick? What happened?" Thaddeus asked, which seemed a bit unusual for him to do, even for Lazarus' standards in which his brother would often crack a sarcastic one-liner, or a joke.

"'pparently she's gotten the "Myxo" flu from being bitten by one of the salmonids, as Mr. Grizz told me. She didn't have a problem with it at first, until me and Ch-" He cut himself short, looking at Thaddeus, who had a smug look on him for a second before it was replaced with his previous expression.

"Go on?" His brother requested, raising one of his eyebrows that Lazarus responded with confusion.

"Wait, you're... not gonna make a joke, Thad?" Lazarus questioned him as they stopped, puzzled by his behavior.

"Not when one of your friends are sick, Laz. I guess, that you and Chloe went on a date, or something?" Thaddeus responded, serious in his tone as Lazarus whined a bit, slightly embarrassed as both brothers resumed their walk.

"That's none of your business, bro..." Lazarus murmured as the shape of the complex came into view. Seeing it, Lazarus suddenly began to sprint towards it.

"Hey, wait up!" Thaddeus called out as he ran to the building as well, which Lazarus arrived to first before his brother. "Dude, what's the hurry?! Does Lily need those pills?!" He complained, watching Lazarus opening the door while holding the pill bottle.

"Yeah, like, right now! Come on!" He gestured, frantically so as the older of the two stepped inside, quickly following his sibling up the stairs to the floor he and his friends lived in. He let out a groan, pausing halfway through the flight of stairs to take a break.

"Lazarus, I swear, you're just giving me a freaking workout here for all I care!" Thaddeus puffed after climbing the stairs, breathing heavily as he was treated to the view of the city.

"Oh, says the one that's Level 50, and is S+ at every ranked mode! Let's go, already!" His brother from above answered as Thaddeus groaned at his comment, slowly following Lazarus to where he was.

"That was 2 years ago, bro! Jeez, at least go easy on me..." Thaddeus folded his arms as the two inklings stood before Chloe and Lily's apartment, Lazarus rolling his eyes at his sibling's comment before knocking on the door.

"Chloe, I'm back! Open the door!" He announced, knocking once more as the door swung open a few seconds later. Lazarus was treated to Chloe, who looked relieved to see him, as well as bombshelled by Thaddeus' sudden appearance.

"T-Thad?!" Her mouth was agape, surprised to see him here as Lazarus stepped in. "Laz, what is he doing here?! Did you bring him with you?!" She asked, stepping back as Lazarus' brother entered with him, just before taking his aviators off to inspect the room around him.

"Yeah, I did. Was kinda concerned about Lily when I told him about it." Lazarus stuck a thumb towards him, glancing over at his brother examining the fridge for food. After that, he walked over to the aforementioned inkling, who weakly cocked her head at the sound of his footsteps.

"GIIIRL, you got pizza here?!" Thaddeus greeted Chloe with a pizza box he found inside, containing only three slices with anchovies within, both inklings oblivious to the sound of his brother popping open the pill bottle behind them.

"Hey, give me that! That's mine and Lily's!" She went over, attempting to snatch the box from him as he sat down by the table, ripping off a slice for himself.

"It's yours?" He asked with a curious, smug look on him. This was obviously Thaddeus trying to tease her as she groaned, managing to steal the pizza box from him while he was busy chewing on a slice. "HEY!" He said with a mouthful, reaching out to her, trying to grab the pizza she had taken.

She was too fast for him as she walked away to his brother instead, holding the pizza box. "That's our pizza, Thad! Get your own!" She smirked at him, much to his inconvenience before they heard Lily whimpering from the couch, noticing Lazarus holding the pill bottle in his hand, trying to calm his friend down as she hesitantly placed the medicine in her mouth.

Both inklings watched, as Lily consumed the medicine she was given, swallowing it along with some warm contents from within a cup. She looked at Lazarus for a while, her eyes starting to turn a little heavy after half a minute or so.

"L... Lapharus..." Lily reached her hand out to him and Chloe as her best friend approached, her voice slurred beyond recognition as her eyes were on the verge of shutting themselves, slowly tilting her head away from them. "...w... whaph... ha...ppening?" Her head collapsed on the pillow, gathering the horrified look of her best friend while the boys watched in mixture of curiosity and shock, not knowing what to do to help.

"LILY!" Chloe ran over to her, placing her hands on the inkling's arms as she began shaking her. "LILY, WAKE UP!" She simply remained motionless, not moving despite Chloe's best attempts as Lazarus and Thaddeus looked at each other, concerned of what the pill actually did to her.

Chloe eventually gave up trying, looking over at Lazarus with an angry glare, unsure if this was because of the pills he gave her being dangerous, or it was just her being tired.  
"What did you give her...?" Chloe whispered, shaky in her voice as Lazarus raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, what did you-"  
"WHAT DID YOU GIVE HER, LAZARUS?!" She took the boys by surprise with her voice's sudden increase in volume, snatching the pill bottle from the younger of the two as she read the contents contained within to find out what they did.

While she was reading what the effects were, the boys noticed Lily's skin slowly, but surely returning to her normal color, going away from its sickly pale look as her tentacles' healthy, vibrant color gradually came back as well over time before Chloe slammed the pill bottle back down, turning to face the boys.

"The shell are "Anti-myxobolus" pills?! Tell me, now!" She yelled, only managing to get a response in the form of Lazarus shakily pointing at Lily as his girlfriend turned around, her anger turning into sheer confusion upon noticing Lily's change in appearance. She looked healthy and normal in contrast to her weak and sick appearance before, almost smiling even in a relaxed manner as she breathed normally.

Despite her healthy appearance, though, she still seemed to be suffering from kind of fever along with copious amounts of sweat running down her forehead, her breathing as well still being somewhat hoarse despite its consistent pattern.

"I... should probably explain, Chloe. Courtesy of Mr. Grizz, of course!" Lazarus finally managed to speak up after initially being silenced by Chloe, nervously smiling at her as she turned towards him with a worried expression.

He began explaining what the pills were made for, trying his best to reiterate what his employer lectured him about as Chloe listened, glancing over at Lily once after being told about the Myxo disease, who was fast asleep while Thaddeus was watching what the television displayed, more interested in the channel it displayed than Lazarus' explanation.

Just as he finished telling her what the pills were made for, as well as the effects of them...  
"NEEEEEERD! You're just like dad, bro!" Thaddeus said after listening to his brother, which caused Lazarus and Chloe to turn their attention towards him, his sibling having an unamused look on him.

"Thad, shut up!" Lazarus growled, which Thaddeus simply chuckled at.

"Bro, I'm just messin' with ya, take a chill pill!" He eyed the pill bottle before looking back at the screen, watching a game of ranked battles showcasing a female inkling, watching them splatting an entire team on their own with their Splashdown.

"Ugh, point is, the pills are made to cure this disease spread by salmonids. Lily's okay for now, but she'll need some time to recover." He looked at her, Chloe doing the same as she hummed understandably at him.

"You could of told me that earlier, Lazarus..." She mumbled, looking down at her legs as Lazarus sighed, feeling bad for having made her upset and scared. His thoughts, however, were soon cut short, just as he remembered something.

"Carp..." He got up from his seat, looking at time on his phone. It was past 12 now.

"What's up, bro?" Thaddeus asked as he looked up at him, noticing the look on his face.

"Gotta go, now! You two make sure Lily's okay, okay?!" He ran to the front entrance, much to his brother and girlfriend's perplexity as Thaddeus stood up from his seat.

"Wait, DUDE, I GOTTA TELL-" He was interrupted by the front door being slammed shut, followed by him lowering his shoulders and hand as he sighed. "...you something."

"Tell him what?" Chloe asked as she caressed Lily's tentacles, causing the older of the two siblings to set his eyes onto her.

"...oh, um..." He stuttered, sitting back down in front of Chloe, watching the screen again as the inkling next to him kept a hand over her best friend's head. "...just... something, that's all..."


	15. Shopping Hell

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XV: Shopping Hell**_

Popping out of the manhole once more, Lazarus was introduced to Octo Canyon, having been scanned by the security gate segregating Inkopolis and the location he was currently in, getting a free pass from the system due to him being related to his mother.

He breathed the air around him, wanting to head over to the cabin where the Squid Sisters and the girls were. Of course, being someone that was fascinated by the octarians, he would first acknowledge their leader behind him, who seemed bored out of his mind, staring at the ground below him with his tentacles being folded like usual.

Once Lazarus began walking over to him, however, Octavio's expression began to brighten upon their eyes making contact with each other.

"AHA! If it ain't the lil' squirt 'imself!" He resonated with exhilaration as the inkling stopped in front of the sphere, a smile on their face as he gave the glass two, gentle taps.

"Yo, what's up, DJ?!" Lazarus greeted, his hands in his pockets.

"Heh, not much, kiddo! Just chillin' in mah lil' snowglobe, seein' the world 'round me move on, hearing the birds outside singin'... bein' bored as usual..." He became increasingly uninterested as he continued listing off other, miscellaneous things, eventually letting out a sigh as he set his gaze down onto the rock pebbles in his prison like he did initially, moving them around with his arms.

"Gee, no wonder you're always cranky and sour when I see you..." Lazarus remarked, watching Octavio remain silent in his globe, only emitting a hum from himself before the inkling heard a pair of footsteps behind him.

Turning around, he spotted Agent 4 standing right there, looking mildly irritated at him.

"H-hey, Agent 4!" He laughed to himself, nervously so as he stepped towards her. "Sorry I came a little late, had some stuff to do back at Inkopolis, you know?" Agent 4 humphed at his explanation, heading back to the squid sisters' cabin.

"Should I follow you in, or...?" His question was answered for him when the agent glanced over at him, waving her arm towards herself, which Lazarus responded by sprinting over to her. "...alright, what now? Head inside?" He asked after meeting up with her behind it, staring at the door which Agent 4 responded with a nod, also looking at the cabin entrance. "Okay, whatever you say." The inkling said before placing a hand on the handle.

He pulled it open, being treated to one of the squid sisters, mainly Callie talking with Ariel while they were watching something on the laptop together. She was wearing a pink shirt with an image of a cat's face on it, along with blue jeans and black socks while Ariel still had the same apparel on her as yesterday. They didn't notice him at first until he took a step forward, allowing the creaking of the floor to make his presence known.

"Lazarus?!" Callie got up upon setting her eyes on him, startled to see him while Ariel was just as, if not, more happy to see him again.

"Hey, surprised to see me, Cal?!" He opened his arms up, walking over to her and the octoling as the idol went over to him.

"Duh, yeah! I didn't expect to see you again after what happened yesterday!" The squid sister answered, her optimism sounding somewhat off as Lazarus moved his eyes away from her statement.

"Um, yeah, about that..." He scratched the back of his head, feeling awkward about last night's events. "...I just wanna say I'm sorry, okay? It WAS kinda my fault, since I yelled at Marie and all that." He looked towards Ariel as she stared at him curiously, tilting her head at what he said.

"I know that, but..." Callie said, her tone becoming glum as several thoughts began going through her. "...why'd you yell at her? She didn't do anything wrong to deserve that!" Assumptions and guesses were made within her head, wondering what could of made him angry at his favorite idol before remembering Lazarus' explanation last night.

Although, before she could say anything, the boy's lips turned into a bit of a frown.  
"She tried covering up what's happening down there at Cephalon HQ, didn't you get me the first time?" Lazarus folded his arms, deciding to sit on one of the chairs near the table while Callie thought about her cousin's behavior from last night. She did overreact a little, considering, that she locked herself in, while locking her own cousin outside the room for the night.

"I didn't know she was covering stuff up, though!" The idol answered him, genuine in her tone. Her visitor goggled his eyes at her, pondering about her statement.

"You haven't?" He questioned after a few seconds, which she responded with a sigh as her shoulders lowered.

"I told you, I didn't know any of the stuff was happening at Cephalon HQ until you told me just now!" She glanced over at the bedroom door, her eyes being glued to it before a puff of air came out of her nostrils.  
Her expression shifted, becoming even more somber than she was before, sitting in front of him. "I don't know why she's kept me, and everyone else in the dark since she and Agent 4 freed me from Octavio, and... she won't even say anything to me after last night! Ever since you and that girl left, she's kept herself in there, and she hasn't even come out to drink or eat, either!" Lazarus looked at the door as well, his face returning to the same look with the frown and all.

Both parties were quiet, unsure of what to say to each other before Lazarus remembered the look in Marie's eyes during their discussion being that of tiredness and pain. He felt bad for what he did, knowing that whatever work Marie had to put up was stressful, and tiring for her to handle, only for him to have made it even worse for her to bear with.

"Again, I'm sorry for-"  
"Don't." She cut him mid-sentence, sounding just as apologetic as him as she raised a hand of hers up. "It's become 'normal' for Marie to be like this."

Lazarus, confused by her affirmation, stared at the idol with a funny look.  
"Normal? What do you mean, normal?" He asked her, which she responded by getting up from her seat, heading over to the kitchen counter.

"Let's talk about it later, I got to prepare myself for today." She said, heading over to the fridge to find something for herself to eat.

While she was busy, Lazarus spotted Agent 4 heading over to the table he was sitting at, sitting in front of him, her eyes looking straight at him.  
"So..." He started the conversation, looking down at the wooden furniture below him. "...you told me to be here today, right?" He looked up, a half-smile appearing on the agent's expression before she nodded at him.

"Well, I'm here! What do you want?" As soon as he finished that question, she pulled out what looked to be a scroll of some kind from her pocket.

" _Typical of her, always carrying notes and papers for some reason..._ " He casually rolled his eyes as he grabbed it from her hand, moving them onto what her sentence would say this time.

Upon reading it, however, an eyebrow of his was raised in confusion instead.

* * *

 _ **Today's mission! Go to MakoMart, and get us some stuff! (I'm too lazy, soz, lol! -Marie)**_

 _ **We need some stuff for the next coming weeks! Gramps and Agent 3 are coming back later this month from their little trip at the cape, so we gotta make this reunion feel REALLY special for them~! (*o*)**_

 _ **Here are all the things we need for this BIG event!**_

* * *

Along with the message, was a list of everyday groceries, desserts, supplies, and various other items instead of a typical message, as well as doodles and random emotes on the page as Lazarus looked up at the inkling in front of him with a puzzled look.

This time, it was a shopping list, and not a message.

"Um... what?" He muttered, dumbfounded as he laid the paper back down, bluntly so as a cheeky grin appeared on Agent 4's lips. "You want me to go shopping with you or something?" She bobbed her head at his question, standing up, and grabbing him by the arm before pulling him out of his seat.

"Hey, w-wait a second, I didn't agree to this!" Lazarus complained while Callie and Ariel watched him from their respective places, unmoving while the former finished making a meal along with a drink.

"4, what are you doing?" Callie asked her, before they showed her the shopping list the inkling boy read. "Oh, right! Come on, Lazarus, how about having some fun in going on a little shopping spree with us?" Callie had a wide smile on her face as she went towards Ariel with the sandwich and drink, whispering something to her that Lazarus didn't hear.

"But I don't wanna go! I wanna know what's happening with Marie, because... because shopping's for girls, not for boys!" Callie went silent upon hearing this, keeping her mouth slightly agape as she gathering the confused look on Lazarus, until a snicker was emitted on her. "What?! What's so funny?!" He asked, wondering what made her respond like this before she burst out into laughter. "What are you laughing at?!"

"Oh, nothing! Just that what you said was so stupid and lazy!" She smiled at him, teasingly so as she got up, walking over to him.

"WHAT?!" He snapped back with warm, darkening cheeks, offended by her declaration as the idol grabbed a small, pink jacket nearby, unaffected by his sudden outburst as she put it on along with her beanie . "I-I'm not stupid, or lazy! I work at Grizzco Industries with my friends, doing my hardest to collect the golden eggs during my shifts every night, and you call me lazy?! How is that lazy?!" The pop star simply chortled at him, finding his complaining adorable instead of tiresome.

"Maybe you're just stupid, then." She said, fondling his tentacles a little with a smug expression on her as Lazarus' cheeks blushed an even harder cyan upon hearing that.

"I-I'M NOT! I got really good grades at school, and... ugh, you know what?! Let's just get this over with, okay?!" He said, defeated as he opened the door leading outside for the girls, hearing Callie behind him letting out a cheerful humph at his hesitant choice.

"That's the spirit right there!" She pumped her fist into the air, patting him on the shoulder afterward as they stepped out. Before that, though, she managed to say goodbye to someone in the cabin, most likely Ariel as they told her, that she'll be back later. After that, she closed the door, before she, Lazarus and Agent 4 went over to the manhole together.

* * *

The trio were walking down the streets of Inkopolis together, having conversed with each other during their trip to their destination through the sewers and the streets of the capital with the exception of Agent 4, who remained silent like always. During each of their talks, Lazarus tried to ask the idol next to him several times on how it's like to live with Marie since she was rescued, but was answered with either Callie moving onto another topic, or signing a fan's weapon with an autograph, which, there were plenty of.

He continued trying to sneak his question into the conversation here and there, until everyone stopped in front of a nearby building that caused even Lazarus to halt what he was doing.

"Alright, first stop!" Callie stopped as the male inkling accidentally bumped into her, letting out a grunt while Agent 4 couldn't help, but make a garbled snicker at him as the squid sister turned to him, finding Lazarus' clumsiness appealing as she spread her arms out. "MakoMart, the freshest place for the freshest groceries! Let's go, especially you, Lazarus!" The pop star ordered, pressuring him through her eager body language before skipping towards the front entrance with Agent 4 excitedly following her inside.

" _MakoMart, huh? Never been here before..._ " He took some time to inspect the appearance building, taking in the supermarket's tremendous size and design along with the numerous customers that were leaving and entering the building, seemingly nonstop. Along with the flock of customers that were visiting, were some of the usual ranked mode and turf war players outside, chatting, and sharing several laughs, snacks, drinks, and stories with each other.

He turned away the second a particular group of ranked players, a team of three inklings dressed with black jackets, dark caps, and other accessories with the same color scheme turned their curious, shady gaze towards him, wanting to avoid having any trouble with experienced ranked players that could utterly destroy him in a match. Clearly, it was a busy day for everyone inside the building, including himself the second he entered through its doors.

Once the automated doors closed themselves behind him, he was even more stunned by the interior's design.

It looked much bigger on the inside than it did outside, the inkling's eyes widening in amazement as he saw all sorts of other inhabitants and species walking around the supermarket, along with all the dozens of aisles below him holding various types of groceries on them. That, and there were several other subsections of the supermarket, including a small gamer's retailer shop, clothes shop, a butcher, a fish market, and much more too much for Lazarus to even comprehend as he continued looking at what this place had to offer from the view alone.

"Lazarus?" He felt someone next to him give him a friendly bump, snapping him out of his amazement as he looked at the pop star and Agent 4.

"Y-yeah, what's up?!" He asked, still taken aback by the interior, glancing over at what was behind him, still not done with taking in the sights of the supermarket while Callie had the same, carefree smile on her lips.

The inkling swore for a second, that he saw several humanoid figures looking at him and the girls from the entrance outside, likely curious about what one of the Squid Sisters was doing here without her cousin before they disappeared behind the wall upon setting his eyes on them.

"We're waiting for you over here, come on!" She beckoned, oblivious to Lazarus randomly shuddering at whatever he saw as he followed her, grabbing himself a shopping cart with her and their accomplice.

"Alright, so what are we looking for here? Stuff for some kinda reunion for your grandpa, or something?" He began rolling down the first aisle of groceries, spotting Agent 4 grabbing a large bottle from one of the coolers, a soda battle, to be exact.

"Yep!" She answered, energetic in her tone. "While I was working with Octavio and his goons, thanks to those 'hypnoshades' he gave me, Gramps and Agent 3 have been on a research trip at the cape! Don't know what they've been researching there, though..." Callie explained with an unsure expression, grabbing hold of some chocolates and desserts she had found before putting it in hers and Lazarus' cart.

"At the cape?" He inquired, his expression perking up as Callie hummed, in the form of a positive response. "That's actually awesome!" Lazarus expressed with a glee, causing the idol's attention to be attracted to him after placing a sack of flour into her cart.

"Really? Why's that?" The pop star raised an eyebrow at him, rolling her cart down the section a little.

"Nothing, just that my equally awesome dad works there!" Lazarus replied with a grin, interested as he rolled the cart towards the agent after Callie had found everything they would need, including some plastic cups, streamers, confetti, tableclothes, and other things they would need.

"Your dad works there?!" The squid sister asked while Agent 4 was taking the items they were looking for, surprised by what Lazarus said as the three of them rolled down to the next aisle they were looking for.

"Yeah! My dad's an archaeologist that looks for prehistoric tech we could use! Quite a huge fan of exploring places, too, finding really cool stuff in temples and caves, and..." It sounded like he wasn't finished with his sentence completely, looking down at his cart as Callie and Agent 4 eyed him curiously, a single laugh coming out of him as he placed one of his hands over his temple. " ...well, he was also a... teacher of mine back at school... Before I became 14, though!" He felt awkward, almost blushing for saying that, remembering how some of the kids back then would often pick on him after a lesson hosted by his father for being his 'special little snowflake.' That, along with his hairstyle being a bowl cut back then, which was looked down upon by other kids that were more into turf wars and ranked battles until he eventually changed it to the style the other children had, as well as the one he currently has now to avoid being picked on any further by other competitive players in the square.

"Wait, you had your dad as your teacher?!" He blushed hard at Callie's comment, feeling a wave of embarrassment run over him before muttering out a quiet: "Yeah..."

"That's cool! Did he teach you about the Great Turf War and the Octoweapons?" The boy could do nothing, but hide his face with his coat, gritting his teeth from overwhelming embarrassment as he heard Agent 4 chuckle at him for what he was doing.

"...yeah, he did. Can we move on, please...?" The inkling pleaded as he slowly removed the hood over his face, still blushing somewhat.

"Sure! Let's go over here real quick!" The two followed her to the aisle that interested her, noticing that what it contained were several spices, condiments, and cans containing several sauces in them.

"Wait, what are we doing in here? Aren't we supposed to get-"  
"We need some flavor to spice up the food! Gramps and Octavio absolutely LOVE these!" Callie cut him off, grabbing something from the shelf. She pulled out a condiment with wasabi sauce inside, before placing it in the cart. "...let's take this, and this..." The pop star continued grabbing several other spices, including some frosting for cakes and desserts that didn't feel like they belonged in here, as well as some ketchup and mayonnaise that made Lazarus wonder about something for a moment.

As she was discussing with Agent 4 about buying several other items nearby, Lazarus couldn't help, but feel like he and the two were being watched once more, looking behind him as he spotted the same, dark figures from before walking past the aisle he and the girls were in. He could barely just make out who it was, noticing that one of them were wearing a black jacket before whoever it was disappeared into the next aisle nearby.

"Hey..." He pulled Callie's arm, grabbing hers and Agent 4's attention as the former was talking about getting some fries nearby.

"Hey, what's wrong?" The pop star inquired as she noticed his expression, letting go of her cart as the trio arrived to where all the coolers and its items were stored.

"I just saw someone look at us near the spice aisle. You mind if I check back there for a second?" He pointed a thumb at where it was, which Callie set her eyes on.

"I guess? It could just be a fan of mine, though!" She said, skeptic about his idea.

"Maybe. I'll be right back, okay?" He said as the squid sister nodded, before she and her agent resumed rolling their carts, specifically towards where all the frozen packages were being kept as Lazarus was left by himself, heading back to the aisle he and the girls were at.

* * *

For some reason, it felt eerily quiet when he returned to the shelves, aside from the upbeat music playing from the speakers as he stood there between the shelves, carefully inspecting the holes in the shelves to see if anyone was watching him from behind them. Even with the song in the background, it felt uncomfortable for him to be alone by himself as he looked at each end of the aisle, making sure that no one was following him and the girls.

All was empty, causing him to confidently nod that no one was here before turning around to meet up with the two he was accompanying again.

That was his plan at first, until he jumped upon hearing some rapid footstep behind him, swiftly turning around to the source of the noise.

No one was there, causing his fear to turn into short-lived relief before another step could be heard at the end of the aisle he came from, causing him to let out a short yell as he turned around once more, subconsciously trying to reassure himself that no one was here.

"Hello?! Is anyone here?!" He called out, hearing that the rapid footsteps around him have stopped in response, before they resumed at a slow, methodical pace. He could hear them walking past him, before something broke the spine-chilling silence.

"Heh, you really are a scaredy cat, even after graduation, aren'tcha?!" The voice of a boy was heard behind him, a sinking feeling stinging Lazarus like a hornet the second he heard it.

Slowly, but surely, he turned his head towards where the voice was coming from. "Look, guys! If it ain't the nerd we picked on back at school! Still pissing in his pants like always!" He announced, before laughing to himself as Lazarus felt himself tingling with terror at the sight of the inkling standing at the end between the shelves, their eyes being covered by their cap, looking to be smoking a cigarette before another pair of laughs came from behind. Glancing over his shoulder, Lazarus saw a duo, a boy, and a girl with several tattoos and earrings on them, the boy in particular looking muscular with his hair being devoid of any tentacles while the girl had a malevolent, erotic smirk on her, her hairstyle complimenting her appearance as well with only one tentacle hanging from her right.

They were all wearing the same outfit; a black cap with a firefin logo on it, a black inky rider, pants with various holes on each member, and a pair of punk blacks.

Lazarus felt the world's colors around him lose their color as he realized, that these were some of his old classmates that he was a part of during his development phases, mainly a small trio of bullies that targeted him and some of the other 'bowl cut' inklings for every physical education subject, looking to become some of the best turf war players since their graduation.

And, scarily enough, these were the exact same inklings that had been stalking him and the girls since they entered the supermarket.

"S-Saul, hey! W... What's up, dude?!" Lazarus said, turning his lips into a nervous smile as the trio of inklings approached him from both sides.

"Nothin' much, punk!" He answered in a brash, livid manner, folding his arms upon getting close enough. "Been wrecking and destroying noobs like YOU in turf wars today, just got A+ in every ranked mode along with my friends behind ya!" He had a wide grin on his face as the inkling named Saul took a step closer towards the helpless inkling that was sandwiched between him and his friends.

"C-Cool! I, uh...!" Lazarus looked around, trying to see if there was any way for him to get away from the trio.

"Aw, what's wrong, lil' guy? You scared of us, or what?" The female inkling asked, lowering her eyelids with a seductive smirk as she walked towards Lazarus as well.

"No, I-I'm not! I'm just here, shopping for some stuff!" The inklings around him stopped as he said this. Saul humphed at his answer, walking over to the female inkling, whispering something to her ear that made her perk up along with a sound of interest.

"Say... weren't ya with one of those Squid Sister gals, nerd?" The female inkling asked, seductively taking a step towards him with her friends.

"T-that's none of your business! I'm-"  
"Don't lie to me, sugar." She cut him off as she placed a finger over his lips, before moving an arm over his shoulder, staring into Lazarus' eyes. "You wouldn't mind telling us where she is, right?" She whispered to his ear, raising a curious eyebrow at him as her hypnotic voice sedated his anxiousness, furthering this effect even more by placing her hands onto Lazarus' hips, causing him to stammer in bewilderment before the boys gave him a bump on the side, taking him by surprise as he was pulled into a headlock by the muscular of the two, causing Lazarus to gag while Saul began to play with his hair, almost taking off the band forming his hair.

"Alright, enough stalling, nerd! Tell us where she is! We want some autographs from that octarian wench you're with!" Saul, managing to rip off the band from his victim's hair, prompted his tentacles to fall down into a pair of short bangs, similarly to that of an inkling girl's as he began struggling.

"N-no, wait! S... STOP...!" Lazarus begged, trying to pull himself free. "S-she... she's...!" Lazarus said, choking and gasping for air as the boy holding him tightened his grip. "L-LET ME GO...! I'm... I'm on a mission with her and... THAT GIRL SHE'S WITH!" He shouted those last words out, running out of air as the leader of the trio snapped their fingers at the one holding him.

"Ohoho, let 'im go, Zek! Nerd says he's on a 'mission' with one of his playdates!" Saul said with a devilish look on his face, pitching his head at him as he continued playing and messing with Lazarus' bangs a little.

"Pft, as if a girl's ever gonna fall in love with a B nooblet like you!" Doing what he was told earlier, the boy named Zek let go of Lazarus, a series of coughs and gasps escaping him as he laid there on the floor for a while, catching his breath, and swallowing a lump in his throat before looking up at the one who had him in a choke-hold.

"The shell, dude...?!" Weakly yelling at the trio of bullies surrounding him, Lazarus got up to his knees, only for the three to laugh at him a little after Saul pushed him a little onto the shelf, causing a few items to fall onto the ground and even onto his head.

"Chillax, nerd! We're just playin' with ya a little..." The girl next to the leader said as she embraced them, still sultry in her voice as she chortled a little at their current victim.

"Yeah, punk, what she said! We ain't gonna hurt ya!" The leader of the four cut Lazarus off, throwing the hair band back onto his face before Lazarus could say anything in response, followed by another series of laughs coming from the delinquents.

It was true to what they said as he readjusted his tentacles. They didn't seem to have any weapons on them, aside from them looking dangerous, which made him let out a sigh of relief...

"But you're still gonna tell us where Callie is! Nab 'im, guys!" ...before he felt a set of arms wrap around him after Saul snapped his fingers once more, feeling himself being dragged away by the three.

"WAIT, WHAT ARE YOU-?!" His voice became muffled as one of the boys hushed at him furiously, placing a hand over his face and mouth.

"Be quiet, noob! Tell us where she is!" Saul ordered in a demanding, but quiet voice as they escorted him away from the aisle.

"Yeah, TELL US, NERD!" Zek followed with a chuckle, shaking the inkling's body as they made it out of the aisle they were in, causing Lazarus to let out a suppressed whimper upon feeling them turning towards where ever they were going, before the sound of a high-pitched, garbled screech could be heard behind him and the bullies.

"Dude, what was that?" Zek mumbled as they stopped, to which Lazarus felt Saul and the others turning him around towards the sound of a fast-paced pair of footsteps, the leader of the three cursing to himself out loud as the inkling felt himself being pulled away from them, although, still holding his arms around his belly as if he were shield of some kind while the others' grip on his arms let go.

"WOAH, WOAH, WOAH, HOLD ON, I... IS THAT A REAL GUN?!" Saul held onto Lazarus tightly, keeping a hand of his over his eyes to prevent him from seeing who he, and the bullies saw before the inkling before him fired a shot at the floor. "O-OKAY! L... LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS, LADY! W... we don't gotta make a violence in a supermarket, am I right?!" The leader of the bullies anxiously laughed at whatever was in front of him, terrified as he stuck his hand out to whatever it was that he saw, allowing Lazarus to see who it was that came to his rescue.

Upon squinting his eyes and clearing his vision, Lazarus knew, that it was Agent 4 in front of him, glaring at the four behind him, her teeth gritted together with her set of dualies locked onto them like a set of target dummies. In the distance, he could spot several security guards near the coolers noticing what was happening, before they came running towards her, carrying weapons of their own.

Then, she let out a bloodcurdling, incoherent yell once the bullies began taking a few steps back and dragging Lazarus along with them, like an angry bull that was released from its pen as her tentacles began to burst into bubbles, signalling her special weapon being ready as the inklings behind him yelled in unison, the inkling with the muscle letting go of Lazarus as she began running towards them.

"CRAP, SHE'S GONNA USE HER SPECIAL! RUN!" The muscle of the bunch proclaimed, before he and the female screamed in terror as Saul's friends began to run for their lives, leaving him behind while Agent 4 whipped out a pair of tenta missiles, the male inkling pushing Lazarus onto the ground as he landed with a pained grunt.

"HEY, COME BACK, YOU FU-!" He was interrupted by the yellow-tentacled girl yelling at him loudly, preparing to fire her missiles at him. "Y... YOU DON'T SCARE ME, YOU LITTLE MIDGET! YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE AN INK TANK ON YOU, SO YOU CAN'T-" His fake, brave attitude changed once she launched her missiles at him, just as several, yellow markers appeared below his feet as his eyes widened. "...attack me."

He laughed a little in horror as he stared at the incoming missiles, before loudly cursing to himself as he burst into a sprint, just as the missiles blew up right behind him. He was seen running away with his teammates, back towards the entrance of the supermarket as Agent 4 discarded her launchers, her expression turning into a look of scorn before quickly checking on Lazarus.

* * *

One of the guards that saw the commotion, resembling that of a naga, arrived to the scene, wearing a black security outfit on its chest. It appeared similarly to any other humanoid-like creature on its upper body part with a pair of arms with fins sticking out from its wrists and biceps, except for the rest of the creature's body underneath the belly, which was similar to that of a large serpent's tail, holding out a trident with sparks of electricity on each tip of the weapon.

"You! Drop your weapons, and sssssstay away from him!" The guard demanded in a snakelike voice, hissing once more towards Agent 4 as his dark, turquoise body towered over the two with a scaly hand of his over Agent 4's shoulder as they looked up at the guard behind themselves, her angry expression having been swapped with an innocent, confused one instead before being pushed away by the serpent.

"Drop your weapons, young lady!" Another guard with fins protruding from their back demanded, holding onto a taser as the inkling turned towards her. "You're coming with us for what you did, right now!" Her voice softened somewhat as she slowly approached them, still resonating with a bit of tensity in it as Agent 4 did what she was asked, dropping her dualies as the reptilian guard humphed, gruffly so before inspecting the pair of weapons on the ground.

Lazarus, realizing what was happening, stood up on his feet, feeling his a throbbing headache as he did so.

"W-Wait, it's not her fault!" Lazarus called out as he rested his back on a wall, walking towards them before the serpentine guard twisted its head at him.

"Don't interfere with ussss, kid!" The serpent emitted a rattle as it exposed its tongue, causing Lazarus to be silenced, as well jump back in shock. "Look at thissss, Keila! The label on here!" He beckoned the other guard to come over to him while Agent 4 was dragged with her, pointing out a specific detail on the gun as the female's eyes turned into that of interest.

On the handle of each dualie, was an imprinted Squidbeak Splatoon logo.

"Hey, this actually looks a bit familiar to me..." She placed a finger of hers on it, pondering about the logo until her expression shifted into that of surprise. "You!" She grabbed Agent 4 by her shoulder, causing her to look at the guard. "Aren't you with those... 'Squidspeak Platoon' inklings at Octo Canyon?" Keila asked as Agent 4 looked over to Lazarus, who didn't dare take a step towards the pair she was being held by before she gave an awkward thumbs up to Keila, feeling uncomfortable around the duo's presence.

"That's awesome! But why'd you-"  
"Keila, remember your job!" The serpent raised his voice at his co-worker, uncertain of Agent 4's validity.

"But Lapid, she-"  
"Remember. Your. Job." The naga called Lapid frowned at her, slamming his trident's handle onto the ground.

Understandingly, the female guard stepped to the side before they slithered towards the inkling, staring her down with a glare. "You're coming with usss for quessstioning, kid. Let'ssss go!" The serpent grabbed her with his tail, causing Agent 4 to let out several noises of distress as the guard pulled her with them.

"Wait, take me with you!" Lazarus called out, but was ignored by the scaled entity that escorted his colleague. "She can't talk, I can explain what happened! IT'S NOT HER FAULT!" He yelled out to the naga as several shoppers nearby looked at him with worry, wondering if something was wrong with him before Keila held him back, just as he was about to run after her co-worker.

"That's enough, you!" She ordered sternly, wrapping her arms around him as he struggled free from her grasp, only to give up after his headache returned. "I'll let you know when she's in the clear. Now get out, you're scaring our customers away!" As he was taken back to the front entrance of the supermarket, he watched Agent 4 disappear behind one of the aisles.

"But it's not...!" He reached a hand out to the guard, trying to stop her from kicking him out as they made it to the checkout section.

"Keep saying what you want, kid! Now beat it!" She demanded, about to reach the doors leading outside.

"Hey, have you seen Agent 4, miss?!" Lazarus was relieved to hear the sudden voice of Callie behind the guard escorting him out, watching them look at the pop star behind her.

"I'm sorry, but I'm kind of busy at the moment!" She stated bluntly, resuming what she was doing before Callie spotted Lazarus being pushed forward to the entrance.

"What are you doing with him?!" The squid sister demanded as she ran in front of the guard, blocking the way between Keila and the inkling boy.

"I'm kicking him out, what does it look like?!" Keila began to sound irritated as she side-stepped the squid sister, only to be obstructed by her once more.

"What?! Why?!" Callie had her mouth agape, wanting to know the reason for this as some of the cashiers watched the singer and the guard's interaction with each other.

"He scared some of our customers along with another inkling! Now get lost, I-"  
"Hang on a sec, he did what?!" She interrupted, facing towards Lazarus with an upset look on her face.

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING, CALLIE!" He said, almost screaming to an extent as tears began to appear in his eyes.

Just as Keila was about to grab him, and throw him out the doors, however...  
"GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!" He pushed her arm away, prompting the officer to take out her taser, and aim it at him as everyone around them watched in anticipation for what was going to happen next. "I was almost squidnapped by three inklings, and you think, that it's my fault?!" A tear rolled down his cheek as he choked back on his sobs, wanting to avoid making himself look weak and pitiful in front of everyone.

"You were what...?" Keila stopped as she lowered her weapon, still holding onto it in case he was going to attack her.

"I TOLD YOU! I was squidnapped by three inklings near the spice aisle, all wearing black jackets, and...!" He fell to his knees, burying his face into his hands before he burst into tears, the guard's expression as a result going from irritation to that of worry as he sat against a pillar for support.

Try as he might in attempting to make a coherent sentence, he couldn't, emitting nothing but sobs and poorly-made sentences as everyone witnessing this stared at him with unsure expressions.

"Oh my cod... so that's why..." Keila finally spoke after watching him bawling his tears out, covering her mouth in dismay while Callie was shocked upon hearing what happened.

"Agent 4 attacked those guys? Yeah..." He finished for her as he wiped some of his tears away, sneezing in some of the contents from his nose as he attempted to steady himself. "...all of them were wearing black clothes, had tattoos on them, and..." Lazarus explained in a soft voice, sighing as he moved a hand over his forehead. His headache prevented him from finishing his description of his kidnappers as he almost fainted on the floor, only to support himself with the pillar again.

"Hey, are you alright?!" The officer went over to to help him, preventing him from falling unconscious as she kept him standing.

"Yeah, don't worry 'bout me..." He reassured her with a weak smile, but she wasn't convinced that he was all right in the head before feeling someone behind her, pulling the back of her outfit as she glanced over to who it was.

"Where is she?" Callie wanted to know, which the officer responded with a confused expression as Lazarus slowly walked over to Callie, sighing.

"Where's who? Whom are you talking about?" Keila asked her, not knowing who she was referring to.

"That Agent 4 girl he was talking about." She glanced over to Lazarus next to her, feeling bad about what happened to him. "She has yellow tentacles, has red eyes and fair skin. Have you seen her?" Callie's voice went quiet, still having that concerned tone about the young inkling that had accompanied them for this week's shopping spree.

Immediately, Keila recognized the details of the one she was referring to.  
"Yeah, I have!" She confidently answered, which made Callie relieved to know this as the officer walked towards one of the cash registers. "Follow me, she's somewhere in the back of the building!" With that said, the pair of inklings tailed the guard to where she was headed after Callie had packed up her groceries she had bought, both her and Lazarus holding three bags each as they both went all the way to the back where the butcher and cafeteria were.


	16. Restricted

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XVI: Restricted**_

It took some negotiations and discussions with the officers interrogating Agent 4 about her outburst earlier, but Callie, eventually managing to persuade them along with Lazarus' explanation of what happened, managed to get her assistant a pardon from the supermarket's chief of security after they reviewed some of the tapes displaying the small band of delinquents attempting to kidnap Lazarus.

After earning a personal apology from the owner along with him promising to have his guards keep a better eye out for trouble, as well as spread the word around of the trio, each of them were given a 75% coupon and were allowed to take the groceries home for free as compensation, hoping that they weren't affected too much by these recent events, and that they would come back again despite what happened.

"No way am I giving those three an autograph! EVER!" The idol snapped upon storming out the supermarket's doors, pushing the automated doors open herself, holding two bags as Agent 4 and Lazarus following her out, carrying a pair of their own. "Like, oh my cod! They just had to stalk me like a bunch of creepers, didn't they?!" She continued ranting to her agent and the inkling boy, grabbing the attention of several bystanders as they were walking.

Still being traumatized by what happened, Lazarus looked around to see if the trio were somewhere nearby, watching him from the shadows like a group of vultures waiting for their meal.

From the looks of things, they weren't, which made him breath out in solace as he followed his partner along with the pop star, who lead the way back to the square where the manhole was, ignoring any of the inklings around them wanting autographs from her.

"Callie?" Lazarus finally spoke upon arriving to the square, which was filling with inklings streaming out of the lobby. His voice was resonating with timidness as the pop star glanced at him, still somewhat annoyed on her expression.

"Yeah?" She raised an eyebrow, slowing down as they approached their destination.

"Are you... mad at me?" Lazarus asked, watching her stop as she turned around, which he responded by looking away from himself, muttering out an apology.

"I'm not, what makes you say that?!" Callie stared with a confused look on her face, wondering what he could of meant by. She was about to ask him if it were the trio of bullies from before, until he cut her off.

"I... I was just wondering, since... I didn't do anything about those bullies, and..." He wanted to say something else, only to let out a sigh before lifting a bag of his, placing a hand over his arm carrying the groceries. "...screw it..." He mumbled out loud, walking over to her before noticing Callie walking up to him, stopping right in front of him with a hint of a smirk on her.

"Hey, don't worry about it too much, Laz." The idol reassured him, trying to force a positive appearance as he kept his eye on her. "We'll talk about it and Marie's... "problems" when we get back, okay?" The inkling boy nodded, wanting to forget about what happened as an exhale came through his nostrils.

"Okay." He simply responded, tilting his head a little with a collected, neutral look as the girls jumped into the manhole together.

He was about to follow them, until he heard the song of Off the Hook's news program starting, which caused his, along with everyone else's attention in the square to be switched towards the screen displaying the pair of idols on it.

The intro was the same as usual with Pearl and Marina announcing that they were coming at them live from the square, and that it was time for the stages to change.

Before the next set of stages were going to be announced, though, Lazarus couldn't help, but feel, like something was off with Marina's way of speaking. Her optimism was there, but it sounded just a little too forced for him, along with her stuttering a little when she talked, just how she once was when the pair made their first debut.

"YO, Before we get into the upcoming stages, we got some important news for y'all to listen to!" Pearl announced after the intro was done, which made everyone in the square along with Lazarus curious about what they wanted to share.

"Important news?!" Her co-host was intrigued, her reaction looking to be genuine instead of artificial prior to Pearl's announcement. "Can I-! Um, WE hear it?!" She asked, looking a bit embarrassed as she waved a little to the camera.

"Sure thing!" She answered, clearing her throat as she crossed her legs, spinning her chair towards the device recording them. "Alright, listen up, everyone! This is a REAL important Squid Service Announcement, coming at you right now!" The inkling wearing the crown became serious as she faced the camera, asking Marina to stop playing the music in the background as she did so.

Once the noise went away completely, the screen behind them displayed a picture, a noise similarly to that of an alarm with sharp, loud beeps emanating from the monitor as the room dimmed slightly into a red color. Above the picture, were some headlines saying: "DANGER! STAY AWAY!" in inkling text, the picture itself showcasing the three delinquents from earlier, having a red circle being marked on them as they were shown spying the supermarket that he, Agent 4 and Callie had been at half an hour ago.

"There have been reports about a small group of delinquents wearing black clothes, trying to capture, and force a few squids into their team lately, mainly those that are alone by themselves! Their most recent crime now, was an attempted squidnapping of an inkling boy at the MakoMart Supermarket!" Marina, along with everyone else in the square were shocked, a part of the crowd watching the broadcast letting out a few gasps as everyone became concerned about this. Lazarus, on the other hand, felt a mix of relief, as well as nervousness that the recent news from the chief have reached the two idols as several thoughts ran through his head.

On one hand, he was grateful to see, that these three were now given the kind of attention they deserved, as well as warning everyone else in the square and Inkopolis about their presence and intentions.

On the other, though, he wondered if he himself was going to be displayed on screen being kidnapped, wondering too, if the gang of bullies were watching.

He could only wait, and watch.

"To those that have been attacked by these three, we hope, that you're all right after escaping these ruffians, and help us find these rotten squidheads!" She pumped her fist into the air, looking determined to see this goal being done as everyone in the city whispered to each other, before a series of claps and cheers came from the audience. "Alright, onto the next announcement, shush!" Pearl requested, hushing everyone as the inklings in the square went silent, listening intently.

He was relieved, knowing that Pearl and Marina acknowledged him and the other victims that had been attacked without giving away their personal info.

"Wait, there's more?!" The octoling was surprised, adjusting her headphones as Lazarus watched in anticipation for the next announcement would be.

"Sure is! You ready to hear it?" The inkling asked with excitement, looking as though she was ready to break some huge news to her.

"Tell me, don't keep us waiting!" The octoling clasped her hands together, staring at Pearl with suspense among the dimmed lights.

"Alright! Our next announcement... is about the campaign to free the octarians!" Marina squeed in response to this announcement, almost jumping as she covered her mouth while the lights in the studio began to brighten. Lazarus hummed, interested as he continued watching.

"Oh my go-!" Marina cut herself off, looking at her co-host with widened eyes as she rapidly breathed into her hands. "REALLY?! Have we made any progress yet?!" She asked upon removing her appendages from her lips. She asked her co-host about this repeatedly, just like a child asking their parent if they wanted to go on a cool-looking amusement ride.

"Yeah, calm down, Marina, jeez! I know you're excited and all, but we still haven't made a whole lot of progress yet!" The octoling stopped, a simple huh escaping her as she raised an eyebrow, puzzled before her partner took out a paper with a blue label on it. "Don't look so glum, though! 'cause we've JUST gotten a message from their CEO about it!"

"WHAT?!" Marina screamed, flabbergasted as she stared

"Yeah! Let's tell everyone what it says!" The inkling held onto the page, ready to read it as her co-host turned down the volume a little for the music.

Wondering what the message was going to say, Lazarus, along with the hundreds of inklings in the square, paid full attention as to what it said, even the ones shopping in the Galleria and eating at the crust bucket turning to look at the screen with nothing but interest and curiosity.

"Dear supporters of the "Octarian Equality" campaign!" Pearl began, clearing her throat as everyone went silent. "It has come to my attention, that my people here at the Inkuisition have failed to listen to your cries, and, as a result, will now be willing to redeem ourselves by cooperating with you on showing the octarians what we inklings expect from them!" She paused, looking at the camera before continuing to read the letter. "Do not fret, my children, as I myself understand your concerns and interests in knowing what it's like being with the octarians once more! As one of your hosts of the Off the Hook program, hey, that's us!" Pearl stopped, smiling while Marina did the same, seemingly appreciating the shout-out.

"Ehm! As one of your hosts from the Off the Hook news broadcast is reading this message to you right now in the square, the octoling's people are working as hard, and passionately as they can to get this latest tourist attraction at Octo Canyon for us inklings to explore up and running!" Pearl looked at her partner with an interested expression, while Marina was listening intently to what else the message had to say, resting her head on the hand under her chin while keeping the other on her table.

"Now, onto what you all want! You want the octarians to come back, and live up here in Inkopolis despite them having stolen the Great Zapfish twice. That's fine, except, that their leader's a bloody dunce, brainwashing and manipulating octolings to partake in his idiocy, counting even one of the Squid Sisters. But that's besides the point, the point I'm trying to make..." Pearl cut herself off, putting her face up close to the note as her expression turning into that of utter delight, looking over to the octoling as an overjoyed, toothy smile appeared on her lips.

"Come on, what's it say?!" Marina asked, getting impatient.  
"...is that the octarians... are finally gonna get purged from that rancid place, and live under my watch once the attraction's finished!" The inkling tossed the page away, grinning widely at the octoling next to her was taken aback completely by the statement.

Marina couldn't help, but stare, mouth agape and expression filled with surprise as her partner spread her arms out, letting out several cheers as everyone in the square began applauding with of joy outside their studio, with the exception of Lazarus near the manhole.

"N-No way...! For eel...?!" The octoling began to tear up, facing Pearl as she slid her table away. "They actually listened to us?!" She asked with a glee, grinning as though she had just gotten a dream of hers come true.

"YEAH! It's what you wanted, right?!" Pearl sat up, wanting her and Marina to do a fist bump together.

"R-Right! Ha ha!" Her co-host said as they fists made contact with each other, the duo sharing a laugh together as the octoling began playing the music on her table again, resuming where she had left off before turning to face the camera. "So um, yeah! To recap... If you ever see a group of inklings wearing all black in an alley, d-don't approach them, okay?!" She said, glancing over at her co-host as she forced a smile on herself. "T-They might... you know, mug you, or do whatever unspeakable thing they can come up with!" The octoling shuddered as she continued, before looking away from Pearl, and towards the camera again. "Just... avoid them like the baller or any of those radical specials! If you ever see them... report them to the police, alright? Thanks!" She let out an anxious chuckle as she finished, looking back at Pearl with a timid look.

"Yeah, can't forget about our campaign, too!" She folded her arms, confident as a smirk appeared on her. "Anyways, onto the main stages, everyone!" Pearl announced as the next set of stages were announced along with their usual comments and quips as Lazarus looked back at the manhole behind him.

He felt bitter that the delinquents weren't captured or found, though, on the bright side, he was at least somewhat satisfied, now that they've now been exposed. But what caught his interest the most, was the letter the CEO of his mother's organization sent to the pair of idols. Considering his mother always looked down upon the octarians, as well as all the operations he's seen down there at Cephalon HQ, was the letter itself a lie? Or was it genuine and truthful in its words?

These questions kept lingering in his head, before his eyes set on the bag of groceries next to the manhole.

" _Shoot._ " He said to himself, having forgotten what he was supposed to do as he lifted the cover of the manhole, grabbing the bags nearby as he jumped inside with his squid form, dragging the pair of bags he had with him.

* * *

Upon coming in contact with the ground below him, he saw, that Agent 4 and Callie were nowhere in sight, the only thing even close to resembling them both being the ink trails they've left behind.

He sighed, peeved with himself as he knew, that they'd eventually get bored waiting for him as he began swimming towards his destination. Thankfully, it wasn't too hard for him to find his way by following the ink trails, before he stopped before the security door again.

With a short hum, he stepped inside, waiting to be scanned as usual. As the system did it's, however, something else happened instead of just letting him pass through.

" _ **WARNING.**_ _ **INCOMING CALL FROM HAGAR SAFFIRE.**_ " Lazarus' ears twitched upon hearing what the A.I. said, his face becoming baffled in response to it.

"What?!" He said out loud, just as the system continued talking on its own.

" _ **THE**_ _ **CALL WILL AUTOMATICALLY ACCEPT ITSELF IN 3... 2... 1...**_ " The voice announced, before a short beep filled the room.

" ** _Lazarus?!_** " Once his mother's voice came from the speakers, he froze up, feeling like he was caught doing something he shouldn't of done.

"M-mom...?!" Lazarus stuttered, surprised by Hagar's sudden call.

" _ **Just w**_ _ **hat do you think you're doing here without my permission?!**_ _"_ She asked, strict in her tone as the doors in front of the inkling were kept shut.

Lazarus didn't move a muscle, except for placing the pair of bags he held on the floor below him as he looked at where the voice was coming from. "N-Nothing! I... I was just delivering some groceries to the Squid Sisters and Agent 4, yeah!" The inkling grinned at the speaker, laughing a little to himself until the lights in the room turned a dark, red color.

" _ **Don't you dare lie to me, Lazarus!**_ " Hagar said, her voice slowly turning demanding as the door behind him back to Inkopolis Square opened, causing him to look behind him. " _ **You know, that Octo Canyon is restricted to everyone in Inkopolis, except for the Inkuisition, and the Squidbeak Splatoon! Get out!**_ " Lazarus felt uncomfortable, still determined as his nervous, innocent facade disappeared as he looked at his bag of groceries below him, letting out a humph as he folded his arms, tilting his head as he stared at the door his mother kept shut for him.

"I got some stuff to deliver to the Squid Sisters, mom. I don't have time for this." He sternly reminded her, grabbing his bags as he waited for the doors to open.

" ** _I'm not letting you through_** _ **! Go back to Inkopolis, and leave those bags there, now!**_ " She ordered, keeping the door open while continuing to keep the one to his destination closed.

"But why?! Didn't you let me and Thad into Octo Canyon when we searched for that octoling yesterday?!" He responded to her statement, raising his voice a little in annoyance.

" _ **Because I asked you for help when I needed it! You-**_ " There was a slight pause for a second, almost as though she failed to finish her sentence completely." _ **Wait a second... Have you been to Octo Canyon without my permission?!**_ " She was almost on the verge of yelling as she asked this, causing Lazarus' faith in himself to shatter as he took a step backwards in response.

Despite his love for his mother, he was always afraid of her when she was like this. Rarely does she get this angry and demanding, unless he or his brother's grades at school were failing, or if they've done something that upset her greatly.

"N... No...?" He answered timidly, raising an eyebrow with innocence.

" _ **Can you s**_ ** _top lying to your own mother of all squids, Lazarus_** _ **!?**_ " She almost screamed, causing him to jump at her outburst. " _ **If you don't tell me the truth in five seconds, I'm TAKING your apartment away, and grounding you for the rest of this week!**_ " She commanded, brooding in her voice while Lazarus stood where he was, shaking in his position.

He could only babble in fear as his eyes darted around the room, before Hagar began counting down from five.

He didn't want to leave Lily and Chloe behind, seeing that they were the only means of supporting each other, and that him being prohibited to interact with them would be a detriment to their performance at Grizzco Industries.

As his mother reached two, he gulped, and finally gave out his answer. "YES, YES I HAVE!" He answered as his mother stopped her countdown at the last second, yelling at the speaker at the corner Hagar was talking from. "There, are you happy?! You got your answer, now let me through!" He felt a perception of shame fly over him, feeling like he'd just screwed himself over as his mother remained silent on the other end.

She didn't say word to his answer, which Lazarus assumed was a form disappointment from her until an audible inhale was heard, followed by an exhale.

" _ **Why do you never listen to me?**_ " She said in a tired voice, causing Lazarus to feel even worse about what he just told her." _ **Just do your job, deliver that to the Squid Sisters, then get out of there,** **understood?!**_ " He nodded at her in response along with a skittish, positive response, prompting her to continue. " _ **I'm giving you five minutes once I open these doors. FIVE. MINUTES, or I'm coming for you myself, is that clear?!**_ "

"Alright, I get it!" He replied, frustrated with his parent. "Just open the freaking door already!" Lazarus finished as he gave the door an impatient bang, grabbing the bags from the floor as the room's lights turned green, followed by the doors opening for him seconds later with a ding.

The second an opening was spotted, he swam as fast as he could through it to the manhole leading to Octo Canyon, jumping out of the hatch before running to the cabin itself upon assuming his humanoid form, ignoring Octavio behind him.

As he got closer to the building, he could hear some radio music in the form of a soft rock, just before the sound of a harmonica could be heard within. He didn't want to waste any time analyzing what the song itself was as he barged through the doors, swinging it open as the girls inside were initially frightened by his loud, sudden, and rather late arrival as Agent 4 pulled out her dualies, pointing it at the door before noticing the inkling boy standing in the door.

"Lazarus?!" Callie said upon realizing who it was, puzzled by what took him so long until she, Ariel and Agent 4 noticed the hasty expression on him as he got out of his shoes.

"Hey, what's wro-"  
"I don't have time for this, Callie!" He said as he gulped, breathing rapidly as he exited. "Just take these, and do what you want with them!" The inkling wiped the droplets that were rolling down his forehead, running over to them with the bags as he placed them on the floor.

"Slow down, will you?!" The pop star grabbed him by the arm as he was about to leave, making him look over his shoulder at her. "Lazarus, why are you panicking so much?! Come here, and talk!" The squid sister asked as she beckoned him over to the couch, only for Lazarus to free his arm from her grip after letting out a grunt.

"I can't, sorry!" He said, staring at Ariel and Agent 4 for a moment before turning to face the door once more.

Even in his haste, his eyes managed to lock onto something peculiar in the cabin: The bedroom door, which was now open, compared to when it was closed and locked earlier.

A spark of curiosity could be felt jolting within him, wanting to know if Marie was still in there until he felt something in his pocket vibrating, taking his smartphone out as Callie went over to him while Agent 4, along with Ariel, began taking out the groceries he had brought with them.

" _Four minutes._ " His mother's message said as he looked up at the idol, who was inches in front of him.

"Lazarus..." She reached out to him, concerned about the tense, nervous look on him.

In response to her actions and the amount of time he had, he lowered his shoulders, his face taking on a more tired, and depressed look in contrast to his previous expression.  
"I got four minutes. You wanna talk?" He spoke after a sigh came out of him, placing the device back in his pocket as he stared at the idol.  
"Sure, but... why four minutes? You in a hurry, or something?" Callie was confused by what he meant, which made him take his device out again, opening it before showing her the message he was given.

"Yeah, I got four minutes before my mom shows up." The inkling answered, only for their attention to be directed towards the noise of Ariel dropping one of the soda bottles she held, a loud, booming thud filling the room as Agent 4 next to her was taken aback by the noise herself.

The octoling's eyes were wide, filled with realization and fear as she stood there, unmoving while the bottle rolled away from her, a series of large bubbles appearing inside the bottle of carbonated soda.

"W-What...?" The octoling stammered with a hand covering her mouth, staring at the idol and male inkling while Agent 4 picked up the item she dropped.

"My mom's coming in four minutes, didn't you-?!" Lazarus answered before he paused mid-sentence, realizing that Ariel had every right to fear his mother as he looked at the octoling, his expression growing concerned for her while the octoling's grew terrified.

"Look, I'm sorry for accidentally bringing her here, I... I didn't mean to, I swear!" He reached out to her, only for her to react by being as stiff as wood itself.  
"...you..." He just stared, allowing her to talk and say what she wanted. "...you set me up...?" Ariel asked him, lowering her hand, disbelief in her tone and face as tears began to well up in her eyes.

"What?" He stared, confused by her assumption, before Ariel's lips slowly turned into a frown.

"No, I didn't! What are you-"  
"YOU SET ME UP, DIDN'T YOU?!" She interrupted, yelling at him at the top of her lungs as everyone were shocked by her sudden outburst as she began panicking, stepping away from the inkling boy.

"I didn't, calm down!" Lazarus yelled back, causing her to go quiet as she shook uncontrollably. "My mom's put this new security thing in the sewers down there, and..." He slowly approached her as Ariel felt something inside of her, telling her to either run away or fight as the inkling got closer to her. "...she told me, that... unless I come back to Inkopolis in four minutes, she'll-" Suddenly, the octoling let out a bloodcurdling scream as she pushed him away, taking the inklings around her by surprise as he stumbled towards a table with several sets of knives and forks on it.

"LAZARUS!" Callie yelled as she witnessed this, running over to her fan while Agent 4 took out one of her dualies, aiming it at Ariel as she let out a yell that prompted the octarian to freeze up in her place.

While the agent was busy handling Ariel, Lazarus was thankfully unharmed, staring down at the table's sets of knives, forks and plates below him, worried that he could of hurt himself if he had fallen onto the furniture.

"Are you okay?! Don't tell me you're hurt!" Callie worryingly asked as he let go of the table, standing next to him as he turned to face the octoling that had shoved him onto a table with dangerous, sharp objects that could of cut him, alarmed by what she did.

"Don't worry about me." He replied to her, coldly so before setting his eyes on Ariel again, promptly storming over to her with fury. "THE SHELL WAS THAT FOR?!" The inkling boy screamed as his footsteps rang throughout the cabin, bawling one of his hands into fists as Ariel looked away from the agent, who had a dualie of hers pointed at the octoling.

She remained speechless, motionless even as she imagined Lazarus' figure towering in front of her, his body framed in complete shadow with the exception of his eyes, which were a menacing, blue color as he readied his fist for a punch.

"You better apologize for what you did, OR ELSE!" He got up close, waiting for her to make an answer as she began to choke back on her sobs instead. The octoling tried to make out a sentence despite him being this close to her, which Lazarus couldn't help, but find a little perturbing that he was yelling, and threatening a girl his age with violence, upsetting her as well, to boot.

"Y-you set me up, I... I CAN'T...!" Ariel said as tears rolled down her cheeks, disgusted by his assumed intentions as she faced away from him.

"I DIDN'T SET YOU UP, FOR DAMN'S SAKE!" He grabbed her by the sides as he turned her around, only to be pushed away once more with a frightened yell from Ariel.

"GET AWAY!" She demanded as he stood his ground, staring at her intently with concern and impatience before trying to calm her down again.

"THAT'S ENOUGH, YOU TWO!" Callie demanded as Lazarus was about to grab Ariel again, her visage being that of anger of as she moved her arms around Lazarus' body, pulling him away from the octoling while the inkling girl moved the octoling away from him as the pair surveyed each other. "You're gonna turn our cabin into a mess if you continue like this! Cut it out, now!" The inklings of the Squidbeak Splatoon tightened their grip on the two, preventing them from freeing themselves and knocking over other items in the cabin as Lazarus continued to growl and stare at Ariel with wrath, while the octoling watched him.

Lazarus' anger calmed down slightly once he spotted how scared she was of him, asking himself what he was thinking as he looked back at the squid sister holding onto him with regret.

Even when she didn't speak, the inkling could tell, that the pop star didn't want him to go anywhere near the octoling, the look in her eyes alone speaking a thousand more words as he looked back towards Agent 4 and Ariel, whom were waiting for him to calm down.

He relaxed his whole body, trying to suppress his rage as an exhale came out of him. Slowly, but surely, he felt Callie letting go of his arms.

"Alright, don't flip out, okay? We don't need you two to fight..." She kept her eyes on him as Lazarus continued to stare at the duo in front of him and the squid sister. Then, he remembered, that the bedroom door was open, wanting to take a gander inside for himself before feeling his phone again, whipping it out as he turned towards Ariel.

" _Three minutes._ " He felt his body tensing up at the message, seeing as this one was sent almost half a minute ago as he looked back at the two in front of him and Callie.

"Ariel..." He grabbed her attention, who looked at him timidly. "...Let's talk, you and me. Come on." He sat by the table, waiting for her as she nervously looked at the pair of inklings around them, before looking at him.

"I-I don't want to, you...!" Ariel scornfully grit her teeth, stepping away from him as he got up, watching her stepping towards the bedroom. "...I can't...!" Her face gradually turned into that of sadness, followed by her abruptly running to room she was headed to, on the verge of breaking down.

"ARIEL, WAIT!" Lazarus yelled as he ran to the bedroom, evading the pop star trying to hold him back as he slid the wall open, seeing Ariel sitting on one of the beds, burying her face in one of the pillows.

"Hey, leave her alone!" Callie called out as she stormed towards him, only for him to jump inside the room. "Hey, come back! Don't-!" He muffled her voice by shutting, and locking the door behind him, blocking out Callie and Agent 4 as he turned to face Ariel, who was scared stiff of his presence as the two kept their eyes on each other.

"You better not do anything bad to Ariel, you hear me?! Or by the Great Zapfish, I will...!" The squid sister called out from the other side, banging on the door, which Lazarus ignored as he began to make his way towards Ariel.

"Look, I know, that I was kinda rough on you today..." He said in a voice as soft and warming as possible, placing his hands in his coat's pockets. "...but please, can you just listen to me, for once?" Despite how Ariel pushed him onto something dangerous, he tried his best to keep his temper under control, which made the atmosphere uncomfortable for Ariel to be in.

She didn't utter a word to his question except for a quiet whimper, which made the inkling sigh as he resumed his slow, but methodical approach to her, which made Ariel move a little towards the corner of the bed, eventually reaching the wall behind her.

"G... get away, p-"  
"Ariel." Lazarus cut her off, stern, but fair in his tone as he sat on the bed she was on, keeping his distance from her. "I gotta remind you, okay? I don't, and I mean it, as someone who's interested in octarians..." He placed four of his fingers onto his chest, keeping his eyes on her as she stared at him, looking to be anticipating every move his.

"...I don't wanna see you like this, alright? I mean it, seriously!" He glared with a genuine look of concern in his eyes and face, which Ariel couldn't help, but remain quiet as Lazarus answered her silence with one of his own, trying to be as patient as he could with her.

" _Two minutes. I'm waiting for you at Inkopolis._ " He checked the message after his phone vibrated, not caring about his mother for now as he placed it next to him.

"...i'm sorry..." Ariel suddenly spoke, quiet as the air around them as Lazarus turned his attention from the phone to her, still keeping her distance from him while his facial expression was the same, except with a hint of subtle curiosity.

"For shoving me earlier?" Lazarus assumed, the octoling responding with silence before speaking again, her face somewhat covered by her own tentacles.

"Yeah..." Ariel mumbled, obviously trying to hold back from having another mental breakdown as she began to make her way towards her, albeit slowly, obviously hesitant with her movement.

Lazarus, to say the least, felt a little awkward with her approaching him, especially after what happened between them both a few minutes ago as she was just a few centimeters from him now. "...I-I didn't wanna freak out like that, Lazarus! I... just thought, that you've..."

"...set me up?" He said along with her, which made her blush a little as she nodded, emitting a hum as she looked away from him.

With an exhale, Lazarus' eyelids lowered, a little annoyed with her still thinking, that it was his fault for all this. "Okay, for one, I never set you up, alright? And secondly... why would I ever do that?" The inkling initially wanted to yell at her when he asked her the second question, but kept his cool with her, wanting to avoid making her any more scared and hurt than she was as she glanced at him, before looking away from him, a snivel coming out of her.

"I... don't know..." She simply replied, sneezing in as she looked down at her legs. After that, he heard his phone once more, feeling scared as Lazarus turned towards it, and saw the message that was sent from his mother.

" _You better not be at Cephalon HQ, because I'm coming there, right now!_ " He was sent into a state of shock by the message, feeling a sense of dread from reading it alone.

"I gotta go." Lazarus said, causing Ariel to turn her head towards him.

"What?" She was confused, moving the front of her hair to remove the tentacles covering her face. "Why?" She asked, innocent and timid as usual as Lazarus stood up.

"My mom's coming." He answered, serious in his tone as Ariel flinched upon hearing that. "Stay here, and don't make a sound, alright?" He requested, proceeding to reassure her with his words once she started to shiver again from fear. After that, Lazarus went over to the door separating the rest of the cabin.

"Wait, don't go!" Ariel begged as he grabbed the handle, reaching an arm out to Lazarus as his gaze went to her.

"Hm? What's wrong?" He asked, curious what she wanted as she went up, and grabbed him by the arm.

"I don't wanna hide again, Lazarus! Please, take me with you!" The inkling boy stared at her, feeling bad for leaving her like this before a sigh came out of him, allowing her to tug him towards her to the bed.

"I got no choice, though." He said as he sat next to her again, peering at her. "Mom's gonna be here any second now, capiche?" Lazarus responded, relaxing his shoulders as he placed his hands on the bed, which she understandably hums back as the inkling moved a hand over her shoulder, giving it a few pats as she moved one of her own around his. "I wish I could help you, Ariel. Real shame, too." He glanced over to the door, wanting to just leave the bedroom and Ariel herself alone before his parent arrived.

"I know..." Ariel answered, respecting his decision before moving her hand away from him.

She proceeded to lay on the bed, puffing into the bed as she got comfortable, mumbling something to herself, unknowingly garnering the inkling's ears perking up in interest as he was about to leave.

"Excuse me?" He asked, directing his attention once more towards the octoling as Ariel looked up, back first on the bed.

"Oh, just wanna say goodbye, that's all..." The octoling yawned, tiredly so as she buried her face into the pillow once more, sighing into it.

Lazarus, however, thought of what she said during their conversation, as well as before that. He knew, that she, despite the new law prohibiting octarians, wanted to come with him to Inkopolis, realizing just how boring it must of been for her to stay in this small cabin for however many days she's been here, scanning the size of the bedroom itself, which almost felt like a crawlspace more than anything.

She did have the Squid Sisters and Agent 4 to be with, but what was her daily routine, aside from being inside the cabin? That, he did not know, and he could only imagine what she did while he was busy hanging out with his friends and brother, or working at Grizzco Industries, earning him and his family a good sum of money they could spend.

That's when he came up with an idea, an idea that might just work as his face lit up with a cunning expression. He walked over, reaching his hand out to her as she turned her head sideways after hearing him stop next to her, curiously looking at the hand he offered to her.

"Hey..." He gestured with a half-smile on his face. "...you wanna know what Inkopolis looks like?" He waved it towards him. And, as though she was waiting for him to ask that, her drowsy look vanished completely, sitting up, and rubbing her eyes, looking at him with bewilderment.

"What?!" She said, thrilled as she stood up.

He kept smiling, continuing to hold his hand out to her. "I asked, if you wanna know how Inkopolis looks like! Wanna come?" His lips turned into an upbeat grin, causing Ariel to grab his appendage, and stand up from her bed with an excited look.

"Yeah, I do!" She answered, excited as a smile of her own appeared. "I thought you wouldn't...!" She paused, not knowing what to say to his offering as she laughed in joy.

"Okay, please, not too loud..." Lazarus implored in an irate manner, before suddenly feeling Ariel wrapping her arms around him, letting out a grunt in response as he felt her pressing him into her for a hug.

The inkling boy felt like begging for the octoling to let go, wanting to tell her, that he already has someone that's his girlfriend. Try as he might, it felt like she was completely oblivious to what he was trying to communicate to her, causing him to clear his throat as he heard a hum from Ariel.

"I have a girl, you know..." He said monotonously, which made Ariel retract her arms back to her, a slight blush making its way on her cheeks.

"S-Sorry!" She giggled a little, which Lazarus found a little cute. "I actually forgot that, heh..." Ariel held a hand over her arm, smiling at him sheepishly as Lazarus chuckled at her warmly, before giving her an unexpected hug, pulling her into him.

She was taken aback by his sudden movement, feeling a sense of security growing within her, a feeling she only felt when she interacted with her sister before she was brainwashed, as well when she and Dinah were with her own parents at Octo Valley before the duo had to move out as she moved her arms around him again.

Ariel held back her teardrops as her grip on him tightened, the octoling not letting go of the inkling as she began to choke a little, wiping a little of the ink rolling down her cheeks.

"There, there..." Lazarus shushed her, noticing his coat getting a small, magenta spot on its shoulder. "...Ariel, stop crying, you're getting my coat wet." He chuckled, patting her back as he felt her letting go of him, looking at the small spot she had accidentally made on him.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to...!" She laughed a little as he brushed the ink spot off his piece of clothing, spotting the huge contrast to her previous behavior, which made him all the more happier for her.

Their small moment was cut short, however, as a familiar voice rang from outside the cabin, causing the warm atmosphere between the two to shift completely into something resembling a horror movie.

" **LAZARUS!** " His mother's voice was like a mood changer, especially with how angry it sounded. It made Lazarus go stiff as a statue the instant he heard it, while Ariel looked around herself, concerned and worried.

"Gotta go." He said as Ariel muttered out his name, turning towards the door. "I'll see ya again tonight, alright?" The inkling glanced over to her, smiling at her the best he could despite the situation, which she in response managed to crack a nervous half-smile of her own, nodding at him with some form of confidence before jumping onto the bed and hiding underneath the blankets in her octopus form.

"Oh, and one more thing!" He stopped as he opened the door to the rest of the building, turning to look at her one more time as she peeked out of the covering, wondering what he wanted to say.

"...I forgive you for what happened." His smile grew, before he closed the door behind him.

* * *

As Lazarus shut the door, he spotted Agent 4 staring out the window while Callie ran over to him upon hearing his footsteps, her expression being that of haste and worry as she stopped in front of him.

"Hey, my mom's here?" He readjusted his jacket, zipping it as he put the hood on.

"Yeah, no wonder she's here!" The idol said as he put on his boots, tying them together.

"And I heard, that she's pissed?!" He asked her with a nervous, toothy grin, tapping the floor with the front of his shoes.

"Oh, WHAT DO YOU THINK?! Didn't you hear her yelling a few seconds ago?!" The squid sister sarcastically responded before Agent 4 let out several, panicked noises, both Lazarus and Callie barely catching a glimpse of his mother's shape running past the window towards the backdoor after noticing him inside.

A few seconds passed as they heard a series of rapid footsteps coming towards the door, before something banged on it, each knock sounding as thought it was trying to punch down the door down, reverberating even the cabin itself before it stopped momentarily.

" **LAZARUS,** **OPEN THE DOOR, NOW!** " Hagar's voice demanded from outside, almost as though she yelled at the top of her lungs as the knocks resumed.


	17. Be'loved' Smother

_**The Creation of Diplomacy**_

 _ **Chapter XVII: Be'loved' Smother**_

Ariel listened from the bedroom as Lazarus' mother was heard yelling from the other side, demanding the inkling that had comforted her to open the door. And, as she expected, she could hear it slowly creaking open after another series of knocks, immersing herself in complete darkness and silence, waiting for what was about to happen outside.

"Lazarus! Thank the seas, I thought, you were at Cephalon HQ!" His mother was more relieved now compared to before, the octoling silently breathing under the blanket as she listened in on the conversation that would take place.

"See?! I told you, mom!" Lazarus exclaimed. "I was just gonna give these groceries I bought at MakoMart to the Squid Sisters, and nothing else!" She heard some footsteps, followed by another pair before they stopped.

"You were at MakoMart today?" Hagar asked, the sound of plastic being picked up.

"Yeah, with Callie and Agent 4." Lazarus answered, the octoling hearing the same sound going on, as though someone was looking through the bags the inklings had brought.

"And why were you with them?" His parent asked, which Ariel assumed, that she was angrily looking at the squid sister and her agent, before Lazarus' voice returned as footsteps were heard coming towards the bedroom door.

"Because, Agent 4 invited me last night when me and Chloe went here for a date, and... and she said, that there's gonna be some sort of party going on when their grandpa comes back, or something!" The footsteps outside stopped right in front of the door leading into the room Ariel was in, causing her to go completely silent as she waited for the inkling's parent to open the door.

"A party?" His mother was curious, unrelenting in her tone as she cut Lazarus before he could even answer her. "You didn't tell me, a party was happening here!" Rather than being stern and demanding, she was now more confused as the door to the bedroom was slid open, which made Lazarus stutter a little while Ariel held her breath.

"I'm sorry, mom! They, they really needed my help to buy some stuff for it, and carry some of those bags for them, you know?!" All was quiet for a moment as Ariel felt herself shaking, assuming that Hagar was inspecting the room she was in.

She heard Lazarus' mother walk towards the beds, silent, just like her before a humph came from his mother, followed by footsteps heading towards the door.

She was relieved upon hearing it being shut, taking in a quiet, deep breath, proceeding to take a peek out the blanket. Ariel immediately saw the shadow of Lazarus' mother along with the inkling himself, looking at each other.

"Is something wrong, Lazarus?" The inkling's mother asked, only for Lazarus to mumble out something Ariel didn't hear. "...hm, okay then." Her shadow suddenly perked up, looking away from Lazarus', facing someone else instead. "Oh, I almost forgot! Callie?" A hum was heard from the pop star, followed by a: "Yeah?" coming from her as her silhouette popped up.

"Have you seen Marie anywhere? I couldn't find her in here." Ariel hid once more as she saw the lock of the door twist and turn, followed by the door opening as Hagar stepped in once more.

"Oh jeez, um... I-I don't know, she was here this morning, but... I don't know where she is since we came back from Inkopolis! Maybe she went somewhere around Octo Canyon?" Callie answered, which Hagar outside responded with a short-lived hum of approval.

"Hmph, alright, thanks for the information." Hagar's silhouette turned to look at Lazarus, who had been staring at hers and Callie's. "Come on, we're heading home, Lazarus!" Ariel could hear the sound of the front door reverberating, along with the wooden wall of the cabin.

"Hey, watch what you're doing!" The idol complained, which was followed with footsteps approaching the entrance into the cabin.

"I'm sorry, Callie?" Everyone, including the usual, energetic pop star outside fell silent as Hagar's tone became aggressive, followed by her shadow returning in front of Callie's.

"I... I was just telling you, to watch out with the door! You don't-"  
"I don't tolerate you telling me what to do around here, Callie, are we clear on that?!" Hagar interrupted as Callie raised her hands, her angry, commanding voice returning as the squid sister stuttered on her words. "And I will NOT allow myself to be ordered around by someone like you!" She raised her voice as Callie began to blurt out a word to form a sentence, failing to do so thanks to the Inkuisition's chief of security raising her voice to shut her out.

"'Someone like me'?! What do you mean?!" Callie yelled back, confused.

"An octarian harlot, THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE!" Ariel was shocked upon hearing Hagar, one of the commanding officers of the Inkuisition she feared, berate the famous pop star of Inkopolis, noticing that Callie herself went silent and unmoving after that. "Come on, we've waited long enough, Lazarus! Let's go!" His mother ordered, which Ariel could only imagine how the male inkling must of felt there as he said his awkward farewells to the squid sister and Agent 4 afterwards, who didn't respond to him before the door to the cabin was slammed shut, presumably by his parent as the sound reverberated once more throughout the building.

Quietness hung in the air as Ariel eventually removed the blankets covering her, waiting a whole minute or so before unlocking the door, sliding the wall open as she saw Callie standing there, facing the door with a look of shock, looking as though she could start breaking down at any moment with her trembling body.

"Callie...?" Ariel inched towards her, the squid sister continuing to stare at the direction she was looking at. "What happened? What did she do?!" The octoling asked, shaking the idol's arm as they turned to face the octoling, her expression going from that of shock to her looking upset.

"S... she yelled, and... called me an octarian harlot..." She answered, quaking in her voice as Ariel hung her head, knowing this.

"I heard." Ariel, understandably, didn't know how to respond to this as she looked at Agent 4, who was just as revolted by what Hagar said.

"That freaking...!" Ariel saw Callie walking over to the door, balling up her hands into fists as the octoling took a step back, afraid of what the squid sister was going to do next. " _ **HAGAR!**_ " The idol hollered angrily, stomping, and swinging the front door open, calling her name out once more as Ariel was taken aback by the idol's abrupt change in mood, watching her run to the manhole that the two had already entered through one of the windows.

"COME BACK! COME BACK HERE, YOU STUPID _**SQUID!**_ " She yelled at the top of her lungs, slamming a fist on the hatch as she stood above it, the sound of its ringing, metal net being heard from the octoling's distance as Callie knelt on it, staring down at the manhole below her.

As she was, Ariel spotted her leader; Octavio, watching the pop star, confused about what's happening. She wanted to go outside to talk with Callie, though, considering the circumstances with the cameras and whatnot stationed around the canyon and the section she's in, she couldn't do anything, but open the window, and spectate them.

"Hey, somethin' the matter, Callie?" The octarian in the snow globe asked, the squid sister in return halting her assault on the object below her as she looked over to him.

"Y... You're talking to me? The... 'octarian harlot?'" She asked, moving her index and pinkie fingers while calling herself that, laughing a little to herself as she went back to watching the manhole below her.

"'Octarian harlot'?!" The octopus took his shades off, eyes widening in shock. "I did hear some screamin' comin' from that hag that visited ya, but by the rainmaker's great explosions! What did she do to make ya weep like a lil' baby?!" Octavio asked, looking upset himself as Callie remained quiet before heading over to him, simultaneously appearing offended by his remark, along with that of sadness as well.

"Oh, I don't know..." She sniffled, pathetically wiping some of the teardrops from her eyes as she exhaled. "...maybe it's because, she called me that after I "ordered" her around as she called it after she let the door hit our cabin, then she took Lazarus with her back to Inkopolis!" Ariel saw, and heard the octarian inside the globe hum, nodding at her as well, appearing to understand the situation that escalated at the cabin.

"That's... just stupid, even for my standards." Octavio answered, surprised at why Hagar would be doing something like this to Callie. "Though, she DID look pretty dang angry when she came 'ere, too. That lil' squirt musta done somethin' to make 'er real fired up, 'cause she normally ain't like that when she comes to check on mah people! Aside from talkin' smack to me, of course..." He grunted, folding his arms as he shook his head in disapproval.

This behavior from her leader was surprising for Ariel, to say the least. Every time she had seen him along with her sister and colleagues, he was always hammy and over the top with his voice, playing and testing around with his Octobot King mech along with Callie herself sitting on top of it wearing her octo outfit and sunglasses, performing for the octarians and singing her trademark single with those shades on her.

"But what did Lazarus do to make her so mad?! I don't understand why Hagar's been like this, lately!" She asked as she walked away from Octavio, wondering what could of made Hagar behave the way she did.

The octarian behind her hummed, thinking to himself a few possibilities before Ariel's voice could be heard from the cabin, accidentally exposing her cover after getting a lump stuck in her throat and coughing in the process, which made Callie see her having opened the window.

"ARIEL?!" Callie stopped herself from saying anything else, looking up at the camera situated behind the cabin, surveying over the area with its red glow as Octavio looked over at the direction she was looking, curious about what she spotted as his eyes set on his minion, watching them both.

"HEY! Ya didn't tell me ya 'napped one of mah octolings!" The DJ said as he knocked on the glass, pointing at Ariel as Callie ran over to him, shushing the octarian.

"Quiet, Octavio! They might hear us!" Realizing this as he saw the camera watching them, Octavio did what he was asked, remaining silent as Callie looked around. "Here, let me push you a little! You might wanna talk to her about Cephalon HQ!" Pushing the snow globe, Callie let out a groan as the weight of the globe immediately took its effect on her, the object itself containing Octavio making a loud, grinding noise thanks to the concrete below it.

Halfway there, a voice everyone recognized suddenly came from under the tunnel leading to the rest of the island everyone was on, grabbing everyone's, especially Callie's attention as she looked at where it came from.

"Callie?" Marie saw her struggling with something, holding her parasol, and wearing her usual kimono with some casual wear underneath it.

"Oh, Marie!" She was taken aback by her sudden appearance, glancing over at Octavio for a second, who she had managed to move towards the window. "D-Don't mind me, I was just... uh...!" She grinned, looking at the octarian she was moving, who held a tentacle of his in front of him, looking as though he was telling her to stay quiet.

"What are you doing? Where's Octavio?" Marie asked as she noticed the snow globe missing from where it usually was along with her cousin sweating quite a bit, before spotting what she was doing with it holding Octavio inside, which made Callie blush a little upon being caught like this while the octarian tried to hide himself with his wasabi sticks, facing away from the other squid sister.

"I-It's not what it looks like, Marie! I can explain!" She said, laughing to herself while Ariel stared at Octavio in front of her, who was doing the same to her.

"Ugh, don't tell me you're planning on putting those stupid shades on again, or I swear, I'll...!" Marie said after groaning, mumbling something else as she placed a hand over her face in annoyance.

"No, no! I... I just wanted Octavio to say hi to Ariel, that's all!" The black-tentacled pop star said as the octarian looked over to Callie, who continued to push the globe the best she could as it made a grinding noise with the cement underneath it while Marie noticed Ariel standing behind the window.

"Oh... well, I guess, you're okay, then..." She whistled a little, looking around her before setting her eyes on her cousin and the octarian again. "...I'm heading inside. Morning, by the way." Marie waved carelessly, just before heading towards the cabin's entrance as Callie continued pushing the snow globe.

As she finished pushing Octavio towards the window, though... "CALLIE!" Marie called out, just as she let out a large huff as her ears twitched upon hearing her cousin yelling for her.

"Yeah?!" She ran to where the entrance of the cabin was, wondering what's wrong before spotting Marie surveying the damage Hagar had done to the cabin's entrance, spotting the door itself just now having a few, wooden cracks on it that she didn't see the first time.

"What did you do to our door, Callie?! It's broken, look!" Along with the damage done, the door itself emitted several creaks while Ariel, Agent 4 and Octavio watched the white-tentacled squid sister move it back and forth, glaring at her cousin angrily, assuming that she had caused the damage.

"I didn't do this, what are you talking about?!" Callie answered, looking at Marie as she tried to say the name of the one who actually did the damage.

"Then who did it?! You, Agent 4 and Ariel were the only ones here, so which one of you three did it?!" Marie began to fume with rage as she stepped inside, having just noticed the coat rack having been toppled over as well with some of the jackets that were hung having piled onto the floor.

"We didn't do anything, Marie! It was Hagar who did it, not me, or anyone else!" The dark-tentacled idol answered tensely, causing the other singer's anger to loosen as she looked back at her, confused.

"Hagar did this...?" Marie stared at Callie, taken aback by her answer while her cousin nodded in response.

"Yeah! She came here for Lazarus after-"  
"Wait, Lazarus was here, too?!" She asked as her eyes widened a little, interested, her tone matching her expression while Callie looked away upon spilling the info for Marie, moving a hand over her arm as she let out a whine.

* * *

Unbeknownst to the pair of idols that were talking, Ariel, along with Agent 4 were watching the conversation between the squid sisters unfold, noticing how curious Marie was before hearing the sound of glass behind them being knocked at.

"Hey, ya mind havin' a lil' talk with yer leader real quick?!" Octavio requested, hammy as usual as the octoling turned around, wondering what he wanted as she looked over to Agent 4, then back at her leader.

"I guess...?" She said, trying to smile the best she could despite the awkwardness.

"HA! That's the spirit there!" He clapped, folding his arms together excitedly. "SO! Ya wanna tell me how things are holdin' down there since my... ehm, 'departure'?" Her leader imitated raising an eyebrow, analyzing, and waiting for his minion to make an answer.

"Oh, it's...!" She paused, not wanting to upset her king with the current state of Cephalon HQ, along with her people. "...it's great! Yeah, we're doing the best we can without you, s-sir!" Ariel's mouth turned into a fake smile as she said this, forming a wide grin at Octavio as he was staring at her, not looking to be buying into her answer.

"Don't bother tryin' ta lie to me, kid. I know a lie when I see one." The octoling's attitude disappeared the second her leader said this, who looked to be offended by her intentions with his angry-esque look.  
"Tell me, for real, girl..." He closed his eyes, sighing before opening opening them again. "...has it gone bad down there since my departure?" His voice became serious, although, not to a point where he was demanding, or aggressive like Hagar. Regardless, this made Ariel gulp, realizing, that she couldn't just lie to Octavio like this, especially when he began to get concerned for his people.

Lowering her shoulders, Ariel let out a sigh of her own, opening her mouth to blurt out her answer.

"Yes..." She mumbled, regretful in saying this as the octarian in the globe stared at her, emitting a short hum before nodding at her answer, folding his arms while he did so.

"Heh, well, ain't that an embarrassment..." He mumbled as well, stubbornly looking away whilst Ariel murmured back an answer too quiet for Octavio to hear. "...and here I thought, that the folks at Inkopolis wouldn't mind our shtick too seriously..." He moved an arm of his up to his forehead, covering his eyes in what seemed to be disappointment as he exhaled, a series of bubbles coming out of him.

"'Our shtick'?" Ariel was puzzled, not understanding what he meant by as his expression perked up from what she said.

"Oh, how stupid of me, I shoulda just told you what I meant!" He cleared his throat, turning around to look at her again. "You see, during that whole parade with the 'Stealin' the Zapfish' and 'Kidnapping Callie' thing?" The octarian looked around for a moment, almost as though he was about to share an embarrassing secret he's kept from someone.

Ariel waited, wanting to know what he was going to say next.  
"Yeah?" She raised an eyebrow, curious as her grip on the window's panel tightened.

"That... heh, can't believe I'm sayin' this, but... the whole bloody thing was staged." The DJ finally said as his expression became awkward, which made Ariel's mind go blank upon realizing what he said. "Yeeaah... well, I'll give ya some time to think about it, 'kay?"

She processed what he just said while Octavio looked around himself, not wanting to believe him thanks to how utterly tense, and terrified she and her brethren were of Agent 4 when Callie was under his control, only managing to let out a single "Heh...!" before managing to say something.

"N... No! T-That can't be, you...! You're lying!" She responded, finding herself conflicted while Octavio observed her, lowering his eyelids as he looked down at the pebbles and rocks below him. "There's no way, that was fake! Everyone were getting beaten up and splatted by Agent 4, everyone in Inkopolis were treating like it was some disaster, and... IT JUST CAN'T!" The squid sisters nearby went quiet as she yelled at her leader, feeling herself going quiet after seeing everyone staring at her, worried as to why she was screaming at her own chief.

Everyone were quiet, before someone among the inklings and octarians in the cabin spoke up.

"...What?" Marie broke the silence hanging in the air, confused as to why Ariel was yelling and screaming fake at Octavio as she noticed Callie slowly walking to Ariel with a look of hurt in her eyes, looking over to her for a moment, then back at the octoling.

"I'm sorry, Ariel..." Callie muttered as she stopped in front of Ariel, who turned her gaze towards her, still conflicted about all this. "...I should of told you earlier, but... he's right. It was all set up."

* * *

 _ **Back in Inkopolis...**_

"I can't believe it! You had one job, ONE. JOB, and that was not to go to Octo Canyon without asking me first!" Hagar scolded her child as she dragged Lazarus with her, which he found simultaneously uncomfortable, and embarrassing as he spotted everyone in the square watching him being escorted, some even pointing at him, especially the higher-ranking inklings among them.

The two had been giving each other the silent treatment on their way to their capital, not having spoken at all until they reached the manhole together, in which Hagar only responded with telling him to remain quiet.

"But mom, I-"  
"But what?!" His mother questioned, stopping in her tracks as Lazarus managed to rip his arm off of her grip.

"...Nothing! Just... stop holding me, jeez..." He forgot what he was going to say, looking away from her before Hagar kept him moving towards where ever they were going.

"That's what I thought..." She snarled as she mumbled something else under her breath, growling through her nostrils as they continued their walk down the sidewalk.

"So... how's your day b-"  
"Where's Thaddeus?" The inkling's face perked as he was cut off, looking over at his mother who was behind him, keeping the same, stern, determined look on her.

This was unusual for Hagar, especially after how she had such an upbeat attitude yesterday compared to today. Now, she seemed to respond more aggressively to everyone around her along with the way she talks being blunt, and short instead of optimistic and being filled with energy.

At this point, Lazarus just wanted walk on his own back to his apartment without her following him. Instead, though, he was curious enough to start playing her game.

"Why do you wanna know?" He asked, wondering what his mother's intentions were first before giving her the information she wanted.

"He hasn't answered any of my calls or texts, lately." She pulled out her phone, taking it out, and showing him the messages she had sent his brother. "I'm getting really worried about him, and... I just wanted to know, if you've seen him or not." Hagar's stern look softened a little, her face and voice having become that of concern as the male inkling stopped walking, now looking at her directly.

He was still unsure if he should tell her or not, considering how scared his brother felt during their discussion of her this morning. Eventually...

"He's at Chloe and Lily's." He answered, right after inhaling some fresh air around him, and turning away from her. "Now, can you please leave me alone, because-" She abruptly grabbed him by the shoulder, causing him to freeze as he felt the world around him stop.

"He's where?" Hagar asked emptily as her bangs swayed a little, still having that sense of seriousness in her voice.

Lazarus, on the other hand, felt something cold run up his back, turning around as he swiped her hands off him, feeling creeped out by her blank, robotic stare as he emitted a hiss to signal his discomfort

"T-Thad's at Chloe and Lily's apartment! L-Leave me alone!" Lazarus' voice shook as he locked his eyes with his mother's, whose expression for him felt off and unusual, especially with her blank-looking eyes.

Looking around himself, he could also see, that some of the people that passed by avoided them both, looking to be scared of her, or even them, as well. "I... I'll show you where he is... if you'll stop following me around like you're some sort of babysitter, okay?!" He gulped, keeping a distance of his own from Hagar as she hummed, walking towards him with a neutral, indifferent visage on her.

"Show me where he is, then." She simply requested, eerily stiff with her movement as she followed him the second they both began heading towards the apartment complex.

* * *

Several minutes passed before they eventually reached the building where he and the girls live, the inkling boy looking over to his mother who hadn't said a single word to him during their walk towards the complex.

"Okay... you swear, you won't follow me after this?" Lazarus asked, worried as his mother nodded quietly.

"Yes, now open the door, and let's get your brother." She stated, tapping her feet impatiently as the inkling did what she asked, pulling open the door as Lazarus and Hagar went towards the stairs, only for the latter of the two to stop as something caught her attention.

"Mom, you coming?" Lazarus asked as he turned around to see her standing in front of the elevator, waiting for it.

"I'll take the elevator. Make sure, Thaddeus is ready when I get there, alright?" Her eyes narrowed, which made him feel awkward.

"Got it..." He shuddered, running up the stairs as he heard the elevator pass by after passing the first two stories of the building, eventually reaching the floor his brother and friends were at, dashing his way over to the apartment where everyone were, including his sibling.

After thinking about this, Lazarus let out a deep breath, before knocked on the door, surprised to find out that it was unlocked upon opening it.

"Come in!" Chloe's familiar voice was heard as he stepped in, looking at the trio that were sitting by the table, sharing some pizza together along with a few drinks. "Oh! Welcome back, Laz!" Chloe exclaimed with her mouthful of food, obviously happy to see him as the inkling saw his brother waving at him, laid-back as usual with a slice in his hand while Lily half-smiled at him, still looking to be a little sick, but a lot better than what she used to be.

"Hey, thanks, Chloe! I see, you're all having some pizza without me, huh?" Lazarus said, trying to keep his cool as his brother took a bite out of his meal while Lily let out a sneeze, turning her head away while doing so.

"Heh, yup! Don't worry, we saved a few slices for ya in case you came back!" Thaddeus showed his brother the contents in the box, holding his phone out as he texted someone on it. True to his word, there were only 2 slices left, looking to have some shrimp, seaweed, cheese and fried scallops on it along with tomato sauce underneath all the toppings.

Before Lazarus could thank Thaddeus, he heard some footsteps coming from the corridor outside, running towards his brother upon realizing who it was as everyone, along with his sibling were confused by him looking afraid all of a sudden.

"Hey, you okay, bro?" Thaddeus asked as he noticed the look on Lazarus' face, just as something entered the apartment he was in.

"There you are, Thaddeus." His mother was standing at where the front door was, her blank, blue eyes set on the older of the two brothers like a hawk having found their prey as the aforementioned inkling got up, his body tensing up as he watched at her.

"M-Mom?! The hell are you doing here?!" He gripped onto the counter, staring back at her as she began to make her way towards him.

"I've come to pick you up." She stated, emotionless in her voice as Thaddeus looked back and forth between the girls and Lazarus, before hopping off from his seat. "The Inkuisition's president told me, you're needed for something. So I came here to find you with your brother's help." She looked towards the younger of the two, a subtle hint of a smile appearing on her lips as she resumed walking towards Thaddeus, who responded by stepping away from her after looking at Lazarus with a disbelieving glare of betrayal.

"What am I needed for...?" He asked, shaking in his tone, not wanting to upset his own parent as they ignored Chloe, Lily and Lazarus, who were watching her while the inkling boy felt something in his heart stinging after having snitched on his brother like this.

"You'll find out when we get there, come on." Hagar reached out to him, ready to grab him by the wrist.

"But why?! I'm not coming until you tell me what's going on!" Thaddeus answered as he backed away from her towards Lazarus and his friends, to which Hagar raised an eyebrow, reverting back to her previous expression shortly after.

"You must. We can't keep everyone waiting for you when you're needed, let's go!" His mother beckoned, starting to become aggressive as Thaddeus gritted his teeth at her, hearing, and witnessing Lily sneeze once more before coughing, covering her mouth as she did so while Hagar seemed unaffected by the inkling girl's sickness.

"I said, I'm not going, mom!" The inkling told her as he tended Lily, who coughed as she was about to drink from a cup of water, accidentally spilling a bit of water onto the table in the process. "'specially not when Lazarus or his friends are sick!" His mother frowned at his response, appearing as though she was ready to force him to come with her, whether he liked it or not as she walked over to him instead, standing next to the inkling with an unconcerned, irritated look as she stared down at Lily, whose expression became intimidated as Hagar's shadow loomed over her.

"Lazarus can take care of her while we're busy, right?" Once more, she was unusually calm now, looking over to Lazarus while the older of the two glanced over at him.

Thaddeus didn't respond at first, watching Lily whimper a little at his mother's presence before emitting a series of coughs as she looked away from her, to which his brother responded by moving an arm over her shoulder, asking if she was okay.

"I guess..." He mumbled as he lowered his shoulders, moving a hand into his pocket as he turned to face Hagar once more, who let out a muffled guffaw at his answer.

"That's better... Let's go then, Thaddeus. Don't keep me waiting." Hagar stated, resuming her serious attitude before heading over to the door, leaving the apartment as Lazarus' brother sighed, following her, albeit hesitantly so after glancing over at Lazarus and his friends.

As Lazarus and the others watched him put on his gear and clothes, they saw Thaddeus turn around towards them again, just after zipping up his white inky rider, and grabbing his aviators sitting on the drawer with a red-rimmed mirror behind it.

"Laz, we gotta talk, real quick." He said, quietly so as Lazarus looked at Chloe and Lily, who looked at each other as he went over to him.

"Sure, what's up, Thad?" Lazarus inquired, tilting his head a little as his brother's expression turned grim, coupled with a hint of worry in it.

"I... don't have a lot of time, dude, so I've just gotta keep this short. Kinda wanted to tell you somethin' before you left for Octo Canyon, and... well," He scratched his tentacles, taking a second to look over his shoulder at the door where his mother was waiting outside. "I thought, this would be the perfect time to tell ya 'bout it before I leave with mom." He sighed, looking back at his brother with a perturbed smile.

"Alright, what do you wanna tell me, bro?" Lazarus said, waiting for him to tell him what he had in mind.

"Okay, so... you know last night, when you were working at Grizzco without me?" He asked, keeping his voice low as to not have their mother hear them.

"Yeah, you told me you couldn't come, right?" The younger of the two kept his attention directed to his brother, who started to become unsettled, quivering a little.

"Y-yeah... you see, when mom and I were eating dinner, she... heh, how do I put this?" His smile was fake as he looked away from Lazarus towards a wall instead, almost as though he was thinking of what he was about to describe next. "She was talking with someone really, REALLY weird on the phone." As Thaddeus said this, the duo could hear an irritated groan from their mother outside afterwards, the two remaining silent for a while or so.

Having heard this, Lazarus' interest was spiked significantly as his face changed to accommodate his feeling to what his brother said.

"Someone weird?" He repeated what Thaddeus said, who emitted a single, timid laugh before continuing, almost as though he was about to cry.

"Yeah... she... pretty much talked with some-" He paused, puzzling Lazarus for a moment before cleared his throat, before talking once more. "I mean, some... THING that was always screaming on the other end, talking like a freaking lunatic that lives in a mental asylum, or something!" Understandably confused by all this, Lazarus looked over to the girls, who were talking, and looking at the two brothers, seemingly wondering what they both were discussing about.

"Thaddeus, are you coming?!" His mother's voice was heard outside, annoyed as Lazarus' brother looked over to the front door.

"I'm coming, jeez!" Thaddeus called out angrily, looking back over to Lazarus with a stressed expression.

"She talked with someone that was... screaming?" The inkling asking didn't believe his sibling, not being able to conceive the possibility or idea of his mother being able to talk, or even have a discussion with someone that was talking in complete gibberish, let alone understand them.

He couldn't help, but laugh a little, only for Thaddeus to start whimpering in what seemed like forever, tears starting to appear in his eye.

"You're laughing...?!" He said, shutting Lazarus up as he noticed his relative about to break down into a fit.

"Dude, I'm sorry, I-!"  
"No, SHUT UP! You think you can laugh at me when our mom had a normal conversation with whoever it was on the phone, and you react like that when that "whoever" wants to take me away for some sorta experiment that mom doesn't wanna tell me, BY LAUGHING AT MY FACE?! _**FUCK YOU!**_ " Just then, Lazarus could see the terror and rage in his brother's eyes grow, being pushed away by Thaddeus as he avoided stumbling over.

Then, he saw it.

There was no way he could be lying now, especially with his expression telling him everything along with the way he talked. And, before Lazarus could even apologize for how he responded... "Oh, and before I go... she said something about the octoling we were looking for being in Inkopolis, and... and whatever that goddamn freak she was talking to... he..." Tears of horror rolled down his cheeks, and despite the way he feels, he slowly made his way towards the front door where their mother was waiting for him. "...nevermind, I gotta go now. Mom's gonna be pissed if I don't come..."

"Wait, dude, you don't have to go! I'm sorry!" Lazarus stopped him momentarily, only for Thaddeus to force an unwilling, nervous smile on his lips as he turned around to face his brother, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"No... I'm sorry for yelling at you, dude..." Thaddeus spoke, his voice timid, quiet, but most importantly: Scared. "I'll... see ya again some time later, alright, bro?" He patted his sibling's shoulder, embracing him a little as he sighed down his shoulder before leaving the apartment, bidding the girls a farewell before closing the door behind him after Lazarus apologized once more to him.

After that, Lazarus spent the rest of his day in Chloe and Lily's apartment, taking care of the latter along with the former, playing some games on their television together to pass the time. Though, he couldn't help, but think about his brother here and there as he continued staying at the girls' apartment, constantly wondering what experiment he was going to partake in.

The girls asked him what he and Thaddeus were talking about, and, as he told them, they initially laughed a little like he did, finding the whole thing ridiculous until they became silent the moment Lazarus told them about the experiment his mother wanted his brother to participate in, along with making them remember how he reacted when he himself started to laugh at him like they did.

As for his shift at Grizzco today, he wasn't sure if he was going to do any work today due to the plans he had cooked up tonight. Only time would tell, as he would eventually reach his conclusion hours later into the evening, just half an hour before his daily shift began.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Been a while since I've done one of these, but I must stress it, that I really do have to apologize for the long wait for this chapter. I did NOT mean to have it take this long for it to be finished.**

 **The reason for this, was because of college along with personal real-life matters getting in my way, along with the TF2 Highlander season I've been participating in. I've become my team's scrim manager as of late, and that work I've gotten can be tough sometimes, because finding another team that wants to scrim with your team along with having to participate in matches and officials can really make everything else stressful along with having to deal with your story, to boot.**

 **But regardless, I've managed to pull it through, and I will immediately start writing Chapter 18 soon! We're nearing the end of the first arc of the story, and I want to finish it by the end of February, or maybe early March. After that is said and done, I will be taking another break to start updating the other chapters from Chapter 1 to 20! So stay tuned for that!**

 **I'll see you all again in the next chapter! Thank you so much for waiting, and again, I'm sorry it took so long for me to finish this chapter!**


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